Lost in Blue
by MarloPolo
Summary: After waking up ashore on a deserted island and without any memories of who he was a young man called Sam tries to make sense of what has happened. Together with his fellow castaways will he find a way to survive and discover who he truly is?
1. Chapter 1

"You know that place between sleep and awake, that place where you still remember dreaming? That's where I'll always love you. That's where I'll be waiting."

― J.M. Barrie

"Wait!"

Surprised the man turned around to the small boy who stumbled through the high grass, his red cheeks revealing how much he ran to catch up to him. Concerned he stopped and waited for him. When he finally reached him he saw the disappointment in his light eyes.

"Are you leaving?", he asked although it was more of a conclusion rather than an actual question.

"I have to.", the man replied determined. "Goodbye."

Disheartened he watched him turning away from him without looking back.

"Is it because you're a grown up and have to do grown up stuff?"

"You can say so."

The boy let out a small sigh and stared longingly at the sky with his arms crossed behind his back. "I would like to be a grown up too. I hate to be small."

Hearing those words made the man halt and look at him with a serious face. "You better not say that. You'll regret it later."

Confused the boy tilted his head. "Why would I?"

"Once you say goodbye to your childhood you can never return.", he explained. "Life will never be the same again, maybe even worse and you'll find yourself wanting to go back to those times when things were still simple."

"Then why are you saying goodbye to me? Does that mean you'll never come back? Why would you say that? You actually just hurt my feelings, do you know that?"

Slightly concerned by this sudden emotional reaction the man didn't really know how to respond at the boy who was staring at him with crossed arms, although he couldn't help but also be a little amused. Feeling that he wasn't being taken seriously the boy's eyes flashed with anger. Not wanting to upset him any further the man went down on his knees and put his hand on his head.

"Then how about `see you later`?", he proposed.

The boy crossed his arms and pondered deeply, trying to look as serious as possible to make the man think that he had to put some effort in convincing him otherwise, despite his conviction already showing.

"I like the sound of that. Yes..."

Relieved the man stood up and ruffled his hair one last time before he let go of him. No longer upset the boy waved at him cheerfully as he turned around one last time.

"See you later!"

Smiling the man raised his hand.

"See you later, Sam."

 **Ahoi, fellow passenger, welcome onboard! I hope you liked this chapter!**

 **This is my very first story on !** **One of my friends on Wattpad suggested me to upload also on this site, so here I am. Since I got the tipp a little later you'll find the complete first season! As you would have probably already read, this is a story about adventure, survival and mystery. The real adventure will start at chapter 9 but I hope that in the meanwhile you'll get to know these characters and maybe accompany them on their journey! If so, welcome to the blue and don't get lost!**


	2. Chapter 2

_Warmth…the sound of waves…waves?_

He slowly opened his eyes. Everything was blurred, his vision was adjusting to the bright light engulfing him. He twitched his fingers.

 _Everything okay? Nothing broken?_

Slowly his whole body woke up. He pushed himself up, feeling the sand underneath his hands.

 _Sand? Why is there sand?_

Then he felt the cold water running down his soaking wet clothes. A small gasp came out of his mouth. Surprised he looked over his shoulder. What he saw startled him.

Nothing but the ocean and sky. Endless blue.

Thousands of questions were running through his head. Where am I, he asked himself. How did I get here? And the one that terrified him the most, the one that he couldn´t answer, that probably nobody could answer him escaped his lips.

"Who am I?"

He put his hand on his mouth and crouched over. A wave of fear came over him. His heart beat faster and faster.

 _Oh god, what is just happening right now?_

When he ran his hands through his hair he felt a sharp pain running from his head through his entire body. Something hot and wet was on his face, his shoulders and now his hands.

 _Did I injure myself? Ah!_

A picture flashed through his head. No, not a picture; it was blurry but he knew it; it was a memory. He remembered something.

 _It´s nighttime; I can see the stars, the moonlight being reflected on the ocean...Where was I? A…ship? Right… I was on a ship! Why was I there? I know I had a reason…_

More memories were surfacing from his mind, a blonde girl singing on a stage and a dark haired man in a tuxedo.

 _Who are they? Why does he look so surprised to see me? Hmm. Oh, yeah. This is when the ship rocked and tossed me overboard… Ugh, that´s all I can remember._

Now that he got something he could work with he could keep himself together. He breathed several times In and out. Knowing that panic couldn´t bring him further he stood up with newfound composure.

The moment he was standing he felt something slipping from under his shirt and shimmering in the sunlight. Confused he grabbed it and held it closer.

 _A pendant…_

Fascinated he turned the small silver object in his hands.

 _This must have been really important to me…_

Carefully he tucked it back under his shirt and raised his head in hopes that he could find somebody who could help him. His steps became stronger, his movements more fluid, finally he managed to walk and notice his surroundings. Palm trees on his right, ocean to the left, sky above him, sand beneath and a brown piece of wood in front. The young man approached it. Slowly it began shaping form. After taking a closer look he realized what it really was.

 _A guitar?_

 _Is it mine?_

He picked it up. It had scratches all over the surface and felt heavy in his arms. He put it over his shoulder after discovering that it had a leather band on it. Now with nothing but a guitar he marched on.

This has to be some tropical island in the middle of nowhere, he said to himself. The beach he was walking on stretched still far away. It must have been at least a few kilometers long, although he couldn´t tell for sure, his vision was still not fully capable of perceiving everything clearly but at least his hearing sense was not damaged.

At first it was just a faint scream, emerging from the sound of the waves rocking against the shore and the screaming of the seagulls flying above him. Then it became louder and louder, forming a name.

"SAM!"

 _Sam?_

Surprised looked up and saw a blonde girl running on chubby legs towards him but not without stumbling and falling several times into the sand. Exhausted and heavily panting she reached him.

"SAM! You are still alive. Thank god!", she cried.

She fell in his arms, gripping his shirt and started to sob uncontrollably. Her warm embrace caught him off guard and through all her tears of joy he could only form one sentence.

"Who…are you?"

He felt her flinching. Slowly she raised her head; the disbelief was flickering in her eyes. Confused she let go of him and stepped back.

"Sam…is that my name?"

"Don´t you remember me?", she whispered.

He looked at her round face, from the rose pout to the small snub nose and the bright blue eyes almost covered by her fringe but it was when he noticed her blond curls that reached her shoulder that he finally understood.

"We were on the same ship!", he realized.

"Is that all you can remember? This can´t be...please tell me you´re joking. Please…"

"Truth is…", he scratched the back of his head "…my memory is pretty fuzzy. I don´t even know who I am."

She gasped loudly. "You mean…you have amnesia?! Oh, no, that´s terrible! Now that I look at you, there is blood on your head.", she screamed panicked.

"Yeah, I knew that already."

"And you didn´t do anything! Sheesh, Sam!"

She pulled his guitar from his shoulder and put it aside. "Let me take a look at your wound. Could you bend your head down, please? "

Obediently he followed her orders, tilting his head so that she could inspect it. Then she took his hand and guided him to the sea water.

"It´s not deep, thank god. Don´t worry, I´m not going to let the water pouring into the wound but we should at least get the blood from your face."

Gently she washed his hair and then his face, while humming a somewhat familiar melody. He couldn´t explain why but the moment he heard it he felt a wave of sadness overflowing him.

"What is that song?", he asked wondering.

"This was your favorite. You were the one who taught me it."

He opened his left eye and looked up to her. She smiled at him and although her strokes felt comfortable the questions just piled up in his brain, making him feeling embarrassed by the whole situation. He looked back down at the water. Then he heard the sound of clothes being ripped apart and soft fabric wrapping around his head.

"Okay, all patched up, Sam! You should be fine now!", gently she patted his back.

"Thank you so much….erm…sorry what is your name, again?"

"You really don´t remember anything, eh?", she sighed.

The two moved away from the water and sat down, watching the waves. She wrapped her arms around her shoulders and tilted her head to the side. Her face looked pale.

"This is so weird. It feels like a nightmare. Oh no, please don´t take this wrong. It isn´t even your fault. I´m so glad that you´re alive. But seeing how you can remember anything, I guess this makes things even more awkward…"

"How awkward?", he tried to make a smile but it looked more like an embarrassed grin.

"Well, how do I explain this?! My name is Claire. And I was… I mean…you and I…we kinda had…", she stuttered and stared straight down. Her cheeks were on fire.

"Just tell me. I mean how bad can it be?", he shrugged.

"I am your girlfriend."

 _Oh, boi!_

"I know this must be a shock for you! And I can totally get why! I mean, not everybody experiences an explosion, falls down from a luxury ship and get washed ashore on a deserted island, wakes up to find that her boyfriend has lost all his memories including his name and has to explain to him that he is supposed to be together with you, I mean, this is crazy, right?! Right?! "

… _.Oooh boiiiiii!_

"Haha, you´re right, I mean, who falls from a ship, hits his head and forgets everything, even his pretty girlfriend."

"Well, you did!"

Both of them exploded in laughter, making Claire fall back into the sand. Sam had to swipe his tears off his face.

"Soooo, Claire, what should we do now? We can´t just look at the ocean the entire time, otherwise we´ll be sitting in the dark soon."

"Heh, you´re right. Maybe we should start moving. "

"Well…", Sam stood up, wiped the sand off his clothes and picked up his guitar. "Let´s head away from the beach and find a shelter and some water."

Together they went up the path at the end of the beach. From far away they saw a small river to their left, streaming down from a waterfall that must have been at least 5 meters high. Next to it was a big hole gaping in the rock.

 _A cave!_

"We´re saved!", Claire jumped up. "Let´s go inside, my feet are killing me!"

"Wait a minute!", Sam held her back by the shoulder. "We don´t know if there are any dangerous animals inside! Just wait a second here, okay?"

"Eh, okay? If you think so…"

With the guitar over his shoulder, Sam entered the cave. Much to his relief there was nothing inside. He inspected the ground and walked up to the walls. The inside looked stable, seeing how the rock was not cracking under Sam´s kicks.

"Well, it´s big enough. Looks nice and stable. But man, is it cold!"

"Um, can I come in now?", Claire head popped up at the entrance.

"Oh, yeah, sure. Sorry…you can never be too careful."

"You really are a lot more cautious than you used to be!"

"Well, how did I used to be?", Sam scratched the back of his head while looking at Claire.

"You never really believed in the whole ´look before you leap` thing.", she said, when entering the cave. She sat down in front of him, stretched her legs out and yawned.

"Phew! I´m exhausted. Let´s call it a day. I´m so done, I´ll probably sleep like a log…wait…", she went up and wrapped her hands around her waist. "Why is it so goddamn cold in here?!"

"Probably because we´re right next to a waterfall.", he pondered.

"We have to do something. I can´t sleep like this."

"Then let´s go look for something to start a fire with. I saw some trees down by the river, maybe I could find something here."

"Want me to come with you?", asked Claire.

He saw the bruises on her legs and the dark circles under her eyes and shook his head.

"No, don´t worry. Leave this to me and get some rest.", he declared and stood up.

"Be careful."

Noticing how scared she sounded he gave her a reassuring smile and waved her goodbye as he left the cave. Once he was outside he shielded his eyes from the bright sun and discovered a couple of trees atop a hill from afar. On his way he couldn't shake the feeling off that he has been in a similar place before and when he climbed up the hill an image suddenly appeared in his mind. Through the mist of his memory he saw a young boy standing atop and offering his hand, but he couldn´t make out his face. Sam shook his head. He had no time for reminiscing.

Determined he stood up and scratched several pieces of bark off the trees and collected dry grass, leaves and big piece of wood underneath the trees. When he headed back he ripped up the dry moss from the rocks. Satisfied and his arms full of materials he arrived at the cave where Claire was already waiting for him.

"You´re finally back.", she said with relief in her voice.

"Sorry, I had to double-check everything.", he noticed a small stack of twigs resting in the corner. "Did you get those?"

"Yeah, tons of them. And they´re all dry. It doesn´t rain often here apparently…"

"Better for us. Can you help me building it up?"

At first they cleared a small area in the middle of the cave and pushed the big rocks they found into a ring formation to isolate the fire and piled the kindling loosely in the fire pit

"But how do we make a fire?", asked Claire helpless and raised her head. "Sam?"

But he didn´t answer and instead stared with hollow eyes at his hands.

 _I´m know it…I´ve done something like that before..._

Like in trance he sat down, carved a small hole in the big piece of wood he found with a stone and started twirling a stick in it. After several attempts smoke emerged from the hole and he quickly transferred the smoking stick into the pit on a piece of tree bark.

"Wow, so that´s how you start a fire! That´s the first time I´ve seen it. I never knew you could do that."

"It´s probably not the first time I did it. Somebody must have taught me how to do It.", he wondered.

Carefully he placed some leaves and moss into the pit for the flames to eat it and they carefully watched it growing. The warmth of the fire slowly spread through the cave as they sat down next to it. Small sparks flew from it but Sam made sure that they wouldn´t land on his clothes. Claire just sat and stared at it, almost being hypnotized by the dancing flames.

"Y´know, we haven´t introduced ourselves yet. Well, I mean, we have, before, but, um… she blushed and clapped her hands. "Wow, this is awkward…"

"I know that feeling…"

"Anyway! I´m nineteen years old and live in a nice little house in Montréal together with my parents and my annoying little brother. I went to high school and I wanna become a singer. We wrote songs together and you always accompanied me with your guitar…I was supposed to sing on the ship, but….now we´re here…"

"So, you know me, right? Can you tell me anything about…me?"

"Well, your name is Sam. Sam Baker…"

"Got that!", he chuckled. "So what´s `Sam` like, exactly?"

"Always a bit of a rebel, not very thoughtful and you sucked in school…but you were just…so…great! You´d always help others, crack jokes and you never gave up no matter how though things got.", her eyes were bright but then suddenly her expression became sadder.

"But sometimes you were kinda distant, not telling me were you go or refusing to talk to me about certain things…why? I really wanted to know but now….it´s too late."

 _I can´t remember a thing!_

"I´m sorry…I´ll try to remember."

"It´s not your fault…", she sniffed and shed away a small tear. "I know you´re going through a lot. And I´ll help you get your memory back!"

"Promised?"

"Promised!"

For a while she said nothing but he could feel from looking at her pale face that she probably had just as many questions as he had.

"Sam…do you think we´re the only ones here? Do you think the ship might have sunk?"

"Why do you think that?!", asked Sam startled.

"Because it was almost like something hit it…"

 _Something hit it?_

"No way!", he said. "It was a big ship, wasn´t it? Maybe we were just unlucky and fell down because we were standing right on the deck and the ship continued its way without us! But yeah, we weren´t probably the only ones who fell."

"If you say so.", she muttered.

"It´s already late, maybe we should go sleeping…", Sam laid down and put his arms behind his head. "Tomorrow we can look out if anybody has come to get us or if there are others here. Don´t worry too much about it.", he gave her a hopeful smile and she seemingly calmed down after hearing his words.

"Thank you…well then…", Claire curled up next to the fire. "Good night, Sam."

"Night."

But sleep was the last thing he could think about. Too much has happened in a short amount of time. Thousands of questions were buzzing in his head and only a few could he answer. _Sam_. The name sounded weird to him. Not only that, everything was. What could have hit the ship? Who was that man he talked with before falling off? Where was this island? Will somebody realize they went missing; and what if not?

Tired from all those questions he finally slipped into a dreamless sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Sunshine entered the cave and slowly lightened it up. Claire woke up from the warmth tickling her nose, causing her to sneeze. For a second she forgot where she was but the memory from falling into the dark water, being washed on the shore and finding him returned. Surprised she raised her head and found herself all alone.

"Sam?"

The fire almost burned out but the cave already felt warm from the daylight. Scared she stood up and peeked outside but to her relief she recognized the dark figure approaching her.

"Good morning!", she yelled.

He responded by waving his arm. Claire smiled and waited for him to come. When he arrived she immediately realized from the look of his face something bad has happened.

"Are you alright? What´s going on?"

"I went to the beach, looking for a ship or other survivors…", he muttered.

"Did you find anything?"

The moment he closed his eyes she already knew the answer "Nothing…", he shook his head. "I´m sorry."

Claire felt her knees going out and crouched down on the green grass, with her hands over her head.

"What will we do now?", she cried. "They just left us. We´ll be stuck here! My family…Mum…Dad…they´ll think I´m dead!"

Sam went down to his knees and took her shaking hands.

"Claire, hey Claire!", he hugged her firmly, trying to give her some comfort but he knew it wouldn´t do much, instead she cried even more and buried her hands into his shirt. Her helpless sobbing made his heart ache.

"Look, this island is pretty big, so there must be several other areas and beaches, maybe if we explore it we might find other people. Maybe, somebody even lives here. "

She lifted her head. Big tears were falling from her bright blue eyes.

"Are you sure?", she asked hopeful.

"It sounds logical to me, at least."

"And what do we do now?"

Before Sam could answer a loud growl came from Claire´s stomach. Her cheeks turned red and she put her hands on it.

"We should probably cook something!", he laughed.

"Yeah, probably…"

"Don´t you worry about that.", Sam pulled her up and patted her head. "I already went to find something. We´re pretty lucky."

He pulled a palm leaf with coconuts and saltwater clams from behind. They dragged it into the cave and Sam quickly revived the fire with tinder from yesterday and put everything he found in front of it.

"I also found a water bottle.", he held it up and shook it. "Stuff like that always washes ashore. Good for us, we can boil water and don´t have to worry about getting sick."

"But we can´t boil plastic! It´ll melt."

"Not if we do it a certain way.", he replied with a grin.

Interested she observed how he filled the plastic bottle at the river without letting any air inside.

After that he put it directly into the flames and to her surprise it didn´t melt just as he said.

"I think my father taught me that.", he guessed. "The heat will be strong enough to kill the bacteria."

"Your father?!", Claire asked surprised.

"Yeah? Why not?"

"Well-", nervously she brushed her hair. "Actually...you didn't really get along with each other…"

"What?"

"I get why you would think that your father taught you this and maybe he did at one point, I don't know! All I know is that you often fought, mostly because you thought that he was too strict with you. You often stayed at my place because of that. It was so bad between you two, that in the end you didn't tell him that you left to visit me in Japan. I was pretty shocked too, but you said to me that he would have never let you go if you'd told him."

"Wait a minute! I just left without telling him?!"

Her heart ached by the look of disbelief on his face. "I'm sorry…", she whispered. "But I wanted to tell you, so that you don't get disappointed later when you do remember him."

He tried remembering his face, let alone feel anything but there was nothing. Just emptiness.

"What about my mother then? Where is she? Or my siblings? Do I even have any?"

"I´m sorry…but you told me your parents were divorced.", she replied helpless. "As far as I know you were an only child."

She let go of him and looked at him with a pitiful face. Sam stared down on his hands and then to the fireplace with the bottle stuck between the hot stones.

"Don´t worry, Sam.", Claire picked up the clams and coconuts. "Rest a bit. You must be still confused about all that, just let me do the cooking."

Determined Sam raised his head, went up to her and took it from her arms. He saw an opportunity to prove her once and for all that he could do better.

"No, no. I will cook us dinner!"

"Huh?", she look horrified at him.

"What? Worried about something?", he smiled dry.

"It´s just that…you? Cooking?"

"Yeah! I´ve got this feeling. I think I´m actually really good at this!"

Claire´s face turned red, and although she tried to suppress it as hard as possible it she then busted out from laughter. Coughing she fell on her knees, tears were running from her eyes.

"Well, chef!", she cried. "Do your thing! I hope I don´t die from food poisoning."

Sam looked embarrassed at her. He slanted his eyes and pressed his lips together.

 _I´m going to show you and then we will see who laughs at the end. Just sit there and watch me._

He went over the left and found a flat stone which he used to grill the clams. After that he spread some good smelling herbs he found at the groove, probably thyme.

Claire observed the whole procedure with fascination and amusement. When he was done she clapped her hands. She took one clam, put it in her mouth, chewed and chewed, looked at Sam with an expression of disbelief at him and back at the clam. He sat there with crossed arms, grinning triumphantly.

"This…this is fantastic!", she yelled. "What happened to you?!"

"I don´t know, but I guess I´m full of surprises."

 _Wow, I must have been a horrible cook._

Claire was visibly shaken by it but then she quickly regained composure. She licked everything from her fingers and declared that she would be cooking next time. They cleaned everything up and broke up the coconuts by crushing them open with a stone.

Happily they drank the sweet juice and ate the flesh. With full stomachs they laid down on the grass, enjoying the sun. After a while Sam turned around and started talking.

"Do you want to go out exploring? It´s not even midday yet."

"Hmm, why not? We do have nothing to do really."

"There seems to be a trail up there, behind the waterfall.", Sam pointed up to their left. "It goes up even higher."

Together they climbed up the path, dodged the water and turned to the left. Behind rocks and bushes opened up to a new area.

"A valley!", awed Claire

A gentle breeze flew through the grassy planes and flower fields. Crickets chirped and birds flew around trying to catch them. Small wildlife hid in the bushes and between the trees, observing the two newcomers.

"Look!", Sam pointed towards a creature in the high grass.

A small rabbit jumped up and ran as fast as a flash into a hole, where it disappeared. Enthusiastically he climbed on a big rock, which were spread everywhere around the field and sheltered his eyes from the sun, searching for more rabbit holes.

"If we could catch that, we could eat some meat!"

"You would hunt rabbits?!", Claire asked him with shock.

"Of course. They must be tasty!"

"If you think so…"

Sam jumped down and continued walking through the grass without paying much attention to Claire´s objection. He found a nice sturdy stick which he hit against the tree to test if it could withstand pressure. To his relief it resisted, making it a good future tool or weapon.

Interested in his surroundings he observed the hills to his right which became more overgrown the higher he looked up, which made it almost impossible to climb up. Disappointed he went up to the edge of the valley and peeked down.

 _No way!_

"Claire, if you don´t mind, I´ll be climbing down."

"Why?!", she ran up to him and followed his finger pointing downwards.

"I think I found my backpack!", he explained

"What?!"

"Yeah, I fell down with it yesterday. It´s stuck in the lagoon down there."

"Do you have to?", she asked with fear in her voice.

"Don´t worry, I got this!"

Sam put down his stick, tucked his necklace under his shirt so that it wouldn´t get scratched and slid down the hill. Carefully he walked down the stair like path and stretched out his arm to grab his backpack. Unfortunately it was wet and the marine life already started to occupy it.

He whipped away little sea snails, weed and crabs but when he tried to carry it on his back he realized that it was still too heavy from the soaked water.

"Claire!", he called.

"What?!"

Scared she peeked over the edge; her blonde curls were flattering in the wind.

"Catch it!"

Without waiting for her answer he threw it up all the way. She shrieked when she saw it coming but managed to catch it but not without falling on her bottom.

After realizing what she just held in her lap and feeling the water soaking her clothes she threw it away.

"Oh god, Sam! That´s disgusting! I´m all wet!"

Sam had to suppress his laughter when her insults rained down on him but her reaction was too amusing. It distracted him to the point that he didn´t pay enough attention to his footing and slipped. Before he was about to fall he instinctively reacted in time and grabbed the edge. Claire´s terrified scream ringed in his ears.

"Shit…", Sam cursed and looked up. "I could need some help!"

"What should I do?! Oh God! Take my hand."

She tried to reach him as far as she could without putting herself at risk but he was still too far down.

"Curse my short little arms!"

His fingers started to hurt, his arms were burning and he could feel his strength leaving him. Slightly nervous he stared at the ground beneath him, realizing that a fall could easily break his bones, or worse kill him.

"Claire, I can´t hold much longer!"

"Wait!"

Panicked she glanced around, looking for something that could help her until her eyes fell on the stick resting on the ground. She grabbed it without thinking and stretched out to his position. Sam took it without wasting much time.

"Now!", he yelled.

Claire pulled with all her might while he simultaneously pushed himself up with his feet and managed to grab him by his shirt. She dragged him up all the way over the edge and fell on her back. Both of them lied on the ground panting and gasping for air.

When she regained her voice she took a deep breath and started screaming out of the top of her lungs.

"ARE YOU CRAZY WHY DID YOU DO THIS?!"

"I had to!", he wheezed.

"What is in that fucking backpack that you had to risk your life for it?! You could have died!"

"I´m sorry….I´m really sorry."

He pushed himself up and found her sitting by his side; her cheeks were red with anger.

"Don´t you ever do that again, okay?! You almost gave me a heart attack!", she yelled.

He expected her to continue screaming at but to his surprise she threw her arms around him and started crying. Slightly overwhelmed by her emotional outburst he could only pat her back and assured her that this was the last time.

"I just don´t want to lose you, okay?!", she sniffed and hid her face away from him. "Sorry for yelling."

"You don´t have to be sorry. You were right. I was reckless."

He stood up and offered her his hand, his lips curled up to an awkward smile. Confused she blinked at him, not expecting such an answer but then she nodded and took it.

She didn´t let go of him the entire way back to the cave. Exhausted from this stressful event she sat in front of the entrance and watched him taking out everything inside and drying his backpack in the sun. He took the knife out of its shaft and watched its reflection in the sun.

"So that´s why you had to went down?"

Claire stood behind him and stared at the weapon in his hands. Casually he flipped it in his hands.

"Yeah. Without a knife we would be screwed. Now we actually have a decent chance of surviving."

"What are you going to do with it?"

"You´ll see!"

Sam went and picked up some snickers he still had in his backpack. Luckily they were still sealed, so he threw them in her direction.

"Here, you can have them!"

"Don´t you want to eat them?!", she asked with bright eyes but already opened the package and started eating.

"Nah, you deserved it."

Worried she slowly chewed on them. Never has she seen those objects from his backpack before, especially not the white captain´s hat.

"Where did you get this one from?", she asked with a high pitched voice.

"Dunno. But I really like it!"

It seemed like it had been worn for a while and felt very comfortable on his head. Without knowing why he suddenly felt sorrowed. Unsure he touched the golden emblem.

 _What was that…?_

He left with his new stick and knife in search for ivy and tree sap, which he found on some the trees by the river. After ripping the vines off, he cut a shelf into the end of the stick. With the sap he attached a sharp stone at the shelf.

It took him some time but finally he had a decent looking spear. By the river he preyed on fish and threw his newly made weapon at them. Although he failed many times he managed to catch three carp. Satisfied with his catch he returned where Claire has been waiting for him.

"You got food?!"

"Yep!", proudly he held up the ones he caught.

"Now go to the kitchen!"

"…okay."

Curious she watched him grilling the food on sticks. With his hat on he looked almost like a completely different person to her, especially with that serious expression on his face. But when he handed her one and smiled he seemed almost like the old Sam.

"Thanks."


	4. Chapter 4

It has been three days since they have been stranded on the island. Until now they have been eating only sea fruits, coconuts and small herbs which only increased their growing frustration.

"I can´t stand this anymore!", screamed Claire.

Angered she rolled on the ground and chewed on her hair.

Sam sighed. It was annoying but he had to admit that she was right. If they wanted to eat at least something different they had to move. But at the same time they shouldn´t head out without some prior planning.

"You know what? Let´s go past the field today."

"Yeah!", she raised her arm and clenched her tiny fist.

He packed his backpack with his knife, two water bottles, fresh coconuts, his notebook which was in a miserable condition but at least dry and his hat.

"Sorry, but we have to leave this thing here…"

Claire was about to put the belt around her waist when she heard his objection. Upset she stared at him.

"But…this is your favorite guitar! Don´t you remember?!"

Sam shuddered. Since he has been here he hasn´t touched the guitar even twice. He argued that it would be easier to move without it but after seeing her desperately clutching to it he gave in.

Maybe it was really better that way, he thought to himself as he listened to Claire´s little tunes she played while they crossed the field. This went on for a while until when they arrived at the end he suddenly stopped.

A big gap divided the path and deep down seawater plashed against the rocks. Carefully he examined the distance and stability of the ground.

"Guess we have to do a little jump, but don´t worry it´s not that big."

He placed his right foot on the edge, pushed off and landed safely on the other side. Relieved he turned around just to find Claire gripping the guitar and shaking in fear. He immediately understood.

"What is it? Heights or water?"

"Water.", she whispered.

"What happened? Did you almost drown?"

She nodded carefully in response. Not really knowing what to do he scratched the back of his head. He never had to deal with a situation like this before or at least he couldn´t remember it.

"You know, you don´t have to be afraid. If you want to I can take your hand. I won´t let you fall."

Fearfully she backed away. "I can´t do this, I´m too afraid."

"Of course you can!", he insisted.

"NO!", she screamed panicked.

This was getting really difficult for him. He had a feeling that he wouldn´t reach her neither with the aggressive nor logical route.

"Look at me Claire, hey, look at me. You can do this! I´m right here. Just take my hand!"

Claire looked up. This must have triggered something in here because she shuddered and made some small steps towards the gap. Sam stretched his arm out and when she took it he quickly pulled her over. She shrieked in surprise and stumbled onto the ground, falling on the soft green grass.

Wondering she looked between him and the gap. Confused she raised her head.

"I did it…?!"

"Easy, wasn´t it? You did a pretty good job!"

"I did it!", she repeated with growing confidence. "I really did it!"

Seeing how she was still sitting on the ground holding his hand he pulled her up.

"Next time you just tell me right ahead if there is something you are afraid of."

She nodded and looked back at that gap. Her heart still beat fast but otherwise she seemed to have calmed down. Suddenly a smile ran across her face.

"You know what? Let´s keep going."

She promised herself not to panic anymore, after all they had to keep going if they wanted to survive. Staying close behind Sam she followed him up path which made a sharp turn to the right.

Small exotic plants started sprouting out of the mossy ground and vegetation became overall more tangled. When they turned around the corner they knew why.

Giant dark trees towered over them and covered most of the sunlight trying to come through the dense leaf canopy. The moist soil was covered in moss and roots. From time to time they heard a high pitched scream coming from one of the trees.

"It´s a jungle!"

"And a quite large one.", added Sam.

"So the island is even bigger than we thought!"

Sam grabbed his spear and walked ahead. He was on high alert. Nobody knew what kind of dangerous animals would live here. And just as he feared a high hissing sound came from deep inside the forest.

"What was that?!"

Suspicious he turned around. "You heard it too?"

"Yes.", Claire whispered.

He had sudden feeling of dread, as if he just entered the territory of something extremely dangerous.

"Let´s move away from that area."

Sam regretted now that he didn´t make another spear for Claire. He had nothing left but to keep her close to himself and tried to shield her as much as possible. But that large animal they couldn´t see wasn´t the only living creature here. Small birds were flying above, screaming and chanting, probably trying to warn others from the two humans stomping through their home.

"Sam! Look! Monkeys!", Claire pulled his shirt to get his attention.

"Huh?!"

Indeed, small monkeys, slightly bigger than a squirrel were observing them from above. They obviously never had any contact with humans, as such they were driven by their curiosity and approached Sam and Claire.

"They look so cute!"

"Let's stay away from them, who knows if they´re dangerous…"

A little disappointed by his decision they continued their way through the jungle, but it was so dense that she quickly grew tired. During that time they found many different fruits such as wild pineapples, bananas, mangos, papayas and passion fruits.

"So that´s how pineapples grow!", Claire wondered. "But they´re so small."

"At least they taste good.", Sam cut one in half and shared it.

They sat down on a larger rock and rested for a while. The sweet juice was a great change from the usual saltiness of the sea creatures they used to eat over the course of the last days.

After he stood up and stretched his muscles, ready to travel further she sighed.

"Can we go back?", she asked exhausted.

"Go back?! But it's not even afternoon yet."

Annoyed she rolled her eyes and put her chin on her hands. Her feet hurt like hell from the sandals she was wearing and the moist air made it difficult for her to breathe.

"Not with me, I´m going home."

With her head held up high she put the instrument around her shoulder and walked away.

"Maybe you shouldn´t have carried that heavy guitar around!", yelled Sam after her.

But Claire didn´t listen and already left. Angry he raised his arms but then dropped them. He couldn´t understand how after coming this far she could just give up.

At least they found their way straight back to the grass planes and to his annoyance Sam discovered that the jungle wasn´t actually that big. They were just walking around in circles.

Back at the cave he sat down and started drawing into his notebook to distract himself, still pissed at her for suddenly giving up. Meanwhile she grilled two leftover fish over the fire.

"What are you doing?"

"Sketching.", he muttered.

Noticing his unwillingness to talk she ate the meal all by herself. For a while she just watched the sun setting from inside the cave.

"I´m going to sleep.", she declared.

"Yeah, yeah.", answered Sam without looking up.

After being satisfied with his map he fed the fire and quickly fell asleep doing so.

The next morning he woke up early and ate some of the fruits he collected yesterday. He waited for Claire to open her eyes but became too impatient and poked her with his spear.

"Claire, wake up!", he whispered.

Groaning she turned around, her blonde curls were covering her entire face. Annoyed she pushed them aside.

"Hm? What is it?", she mumbled.

"We have to go early this time, before it gets too hot."

"Count me out. I´m not feeling it today."

She turned away and yawned loudly. Speechless Sam´s jaw dropped but then he could feel his blood boiling. He has waited the entire time for nothing.

"What?! I should have gone by myself after all!"

"Fine! Do what you want! Go alone, then!", she hissed. "Bye!"

"Sheeesh!"

Angrily he took his bag, stuffed one bottle and his notebook inside, and stomped out of the cave. Now knowing the terrain much better and not having Claire around, it took him way less time to travel. Interested he ripped off tree vines and wondered if he could use them for future weapons or tools.

"Maybe I can make a hunting bow but it would probably not work with these vines…"

From up the trees he heard the monkeys squeaking but this time they didn´t approach him. Following their antics up in the trees with his eyes he almost oversaw the hillside.

"Shoot!"

Quickly he rowed back and held onto a tree with pounding heart. He scolded himself for not paying enough attention to his surroundings.

Carefully he peeked over the edge, seven meters under his feet a small river splashed softly against the rocks.

He let go of the trunk and found a fallen tree not far away acting as a bridge between the sides. After further inspection it seemed to be very old but still sturdy. Slowly he climbed onto it and tested it´s resistance under his weight.

 _No sound._

Step after step he crossed the tree but made sure not to touch the moss covering it. By the middle Sam dared to look down and regretted it. As fast as possible he crossed the bridge.

"I made it!"

When he arrived at the other side he didn´t even look back. What counted was only that which was lying ahead of him.

To his relief the further he walked the jungle lighter and lighter vegetation grew.

He marched through a passage and gazed over the new discovered land, a hill with access to the beach, on which cypress, beech and oak grew. A small river made a turn through the small forest.

 _Man! If Claire could see this!_

Sam had to sit down to absorb all these impressions. He grabbed his notebook and pen and started drawing a small sketch with a few notes next to it. After he was satisfied with his drawing he curiously headed down to the beach he saw from afar.

With his spear in his hand he moved the leaves aside and walked towards it. And although it was slightly smaller than the beach where he stranded it was still large.

"Hey…is that…"

Excited he marched towards a gaping hole in the wall to his right. Just as he was about to inspect the cave a loud voice sounded from above.

"Hey! Are you stranded too?!"

Startled by hearing human voice he stumbled back and looked up. From between the palm trees growing on the top of the wall a young teen jumped three meters down.

"Yeah! It has been four days. Were you on the ship too?!"

He couldn´t believe it, right next to him was another survivor, whose eyes widened when he saw Sam´s face.

"Wait a minute. Aren´t you…", his smile dropped and clenched his fists. "Oh no! Back off, or I´ll destroy you!"

"Wait, WHAT?!"

"GET OUTTA HERE! YOU AIN`T MESSIN WITH ME!"

Before Sam could saw it coming an incredible force knocked him over and made him fall into the sand. Shocked he held his burning cheek. The teenager towered over him with raised fists.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!", he yelled angry.

For a moment he looked extremely confused but quickly raised his fists again, shouting: "What is wrong with YOU?!"

 _This guy is crazy! No way that I can talk to him!_

Scared and disappointed Sam ran away but not without looking scared over his shoulder. He had hoped to find a new home and survivors, which he technically did but not the way he wanted. And on top of that he wasn´t really welcome at home too.

"Argh!", he ran his hands through his hair. "What should I do?!"

But deep inside Sam knew the answer. With a bad feeling in his stomach he travelled all the way back. After going behind the waterfall and climbing down he already saw a wave of blond hair from afar.

"Saaaaaaam!"

He never felt as relieved as now, when he saw Claire running towards him. On her way she fell down but quickly stood up and reached him.

"I´m so sorry for yelling at you!", she huffed.

He noticed the blisters on her feet and cursed himself for not seeing it before. It was so obvious that she couldn´t walk for long with those injuries.

"No, I´m sorry for being so harsh on you!"

She shook her head and responded: "No, no, you were right, we should have traveled farther!"

"Yeah, about that…we shouldn´t."

"Wait! Why!?"

"Well-", Sam scratched the back of his head. "Let´s say there is somebody who kinda hates me for some reason…"

"There is another survivor?! What did you do?!"

"I don´t now! I was just being myself!"

"Well, that probably did it."

"What did you say, young lady?!", Sam grinned.

"Nothing!"

Claire ran away towards the cave, trying to save herself but Sam was faster, already catching her by the river and threw her right into it. But before Sam could enjoy his victory she grabbed him by the food and dragged him down. They plashed water at each other until they tired themselves out.

Exhausted they crawled out of the river and looked at each other.

"Guess I really have to apologize to you."

"Well I wasn´t the nicest to you too.", she admitted while wringing out the water from her hair.

"Yeah, but still. It wasn´t fair from me to expect that you could keep up my speed the entire time."

"And I should whine less.", Claire replied and rolled her eyes. "But now tell me what is going on with that other survivor."

And so Sam told every detail he could remember. In the end they sat on the grass and watched the sun go down.

"Let´s go and visit him. Maybe I can help to sort this out. This is probably just a huge misunderstanding."

Sam touched the bandage that covered his wound.

 _I really hope so._


	5. Chapter 5

The small creature felt them coming before it even saw them. Scared it hid in the high grass. They didn´t even realized that they were just a few steps away from it. The rabbit lifted its head but the humans paid no attention to it and continued their way.

Sam and Claire arrived at the edge where they had to jump in order to reach the other side, again he held her hand or pull her over. Although her jump wasn´t as graceful as his, at least she didn´t stumble or trip over.

Throughout their journey they didn´t talk that much. Mostly they kept their thoughts to them. All they needed to say was said yesterday, now it was on Claire to solve this. If she wouldn´t be able to convince that guy of Sam´s innocence, what would they do, stuck on an island with somebody who wants to kill him?

The closer they approached the new beach the more anxious she became. Nervously she hid behind Sam who pulled the strap of his backpack.

"I´m going ahead."

"What?!", she gasped in shock.

"He could be mentally unstable.", he warned her. "I should talk to him first and asset the situation."

They looked around the rock they hid behind. There he was in front of his cave, sitting and sharpening a stone. He looked around their age, but slightly taller and muscular as Sam. His brown skin shined in the sun and his dark brown eyes crested by long black eyelashes shined with resolve. Sam mustered up all his courage and walked up to him.

"Yo homie…what´s up?", he said and awkwardly crossed his arms.

"Sam, since when do you sound so dumb?!", pondered Claire in her head. "That accident must have really messed you up."

"You…YOU!", the teen jumped up, his eyes wide open. With held up fists he ran towards him.

"Wait, wait!", Sam shouted.

"Noooooo!", seeing the situation already escalating, Claire jumped up from her hiding spot and threw herself between them. Both boys were caught in surprise.

"Hey, you´re the singer from the ship!"

Quickly he dropped his defense and backed away as she shouted at him, while shielding Sam. "Just what has my boyfriend done to you?!"

"Boyfriend?! Him?! You´re cool with HIM?!", he pointed his finger at Sam, who pressed his lips together.

"What are you talking about? Of course I am!", she protested.

Angered he peeked from behind her back. "Yeah, seriously. What´s your deal with me?!"

The teen made a few steps back and blinked several times. He seemed confused and angry, his gaze shifted quickly between them. Then he lifted his chest and yelled out of the top of his lungs.

"You fucking beat up two people and threw me overboard!"

Claire gasped in shock and glanced at Sam who turned white. His heart stopped for a second. Upset the teen crossed his arms before his chest and continued telling his story.

"When I was on the deck going for my cabin I saw two men with guns sneaking around. They tried forcefully entering a room but before they could HE came out, fought them and then went for me!"

His loud voice dropped and he stared aimlessly at the sea, nervously pulling one of the many colored bracelets he wore around his wrist.

"The next thing I remember is him running towards me and pushing me overboard. I thought I would drown but luckily I washed ashore and managed to survive.", he side glanced Sam. "And now he is standing right here in front of me! Of course I´m angry! I´m telling you that guy is shady as fuck."

Claire listened to him in shock. This had to be a mistake, a misunderstanding. The Same she knew would never do such things. His emotions seemed genuine but there was something off about his story. People could remember things wrong.

"Are you sure it was Sam?", she asked hopefully.

"Dead sure. It´s him.", he took another look at him. "Yeah, his shirt had a different color, but you can easily change that."

Unconsciously she stepped away from him. "Sam…what´s the meaning of this?!"

Hearing her faintly trembling voice made his heart sink. Desperate he searched for an answer. "I…I don´t know! I don´t remember a thing! I´ve never seen this guy before!"

No matter how much he tried to remember what happened there was nothing, just a black hole in his mind that was supposed to be filled with memories.

"Don´t play stupid. I know it was you!"

"Actually…", replied Claire guilty. "He hit his head…and forgot pretty much everything…"

She pulled Sam closer and put her hand on his head, where the bandage was still tied around. In disbelief the teen dropped his arms, mumbling ´this can´t be´.

And uncomfortable silence stood like a wall between them. It was true that he was acting completely different from before, but she didn´t want to believe it, that the Sam she knew for over three years would do such a thing. In hopes that she could find out more, she tried to approach the teen as gently as possible.

"Well-uh, what´s your name anyway _?"_

"Name´s James.", he muttered. "James Robinson."

With a welcoming smile she introduced herself. "Nice to meet you, James, I´m Claire…", she said as she pulled him next to her side. "…and this is Sam. James, I know that something weird was going on that ship. But since we stranded he looked out for me and nothing bad happened to me. This whole thing must be a misunderstanding."

Sam was touched by how much she trusted him. Impressed he observed how she handled the situation: even though she disagreed with James she still was still understanding and sympathetic.

"We should team up. Being alone must have been tough. What do you think?"

He leaned with his arms crossed against the rock wall and closed his eyes. Claire seemed okay to him but he was still unsure of Sam. But on the other hand…

"She´s really was with you all this time, huh? Maybe you´re not that bad after all."

Both sighed with relief. James seemed to be more reasonable than they thought.

"But I will keep an eye on you! We´ll see if you´re safe around!", he warned him.

"That´s fair, I guess.", Sam shrugged. Not that he really had much of a choice but this was probably the best solution. He heard Claire clapping her hands.

"Whoohoo! Welcome to the group, James. Don´t worry, Sam is just a misunderstood bad boy."

"Did you really have to call me that?"

James gave her a crooked smile. He felt much more relieved now that he wasn´t alone all by himself. It was tougher that he thought and having two other survivors with him lifted an immense weight from his shoulders. Claire seemed fun and even though Sam might be dangerous but he would keep him in check.

He relaxed his shoulders and pointed to his left.

"Well, you wanna see my humble-a-bow?"

"Oh, yes!"

"Come in! I´m gonna show you everything!"

Curiously Sam and Claire followed James inside. It was a much bigger cave than theirs with an even ground, but several holes in the ceiling through which warm rays of sunlight filled the cave with light. The entrance was also wider and allowed to enter without buckling down. The bundle of leaves that lied all over on the ground were supposedly his place to sleep at night. In the right corner laid twigs and logs which he must have found in the jungle.

"Your cave is much comfortable than ours.", noticed Claire, while wandering around.

"Yeah, but it is always so cold."

Sam stopped and stared in disbelief at him. "You don´t have fire?"

He raised an eyebrow and checked James from head to toes, wondering how this guy managed to hunt down rabbits but couldn´t set up a campfire.

Embarrassed James kicked the small stack of tinder in the corner. Up until now he had been sleeping in the cold.

"Well, it´s not like I didn´t try. But I never really knew how to do it to begin with, sooo… "

Sam sighed in response and pointed outside. "Let me teach you. Claire could you give me a hand?"

Eager to help and teach James she nodded. They dragged him into the woods where Sam taught him the basics of finding good tinder, choosing the best bark and stick.

Fortunately there was much more in comparison to where they lived before so Claire collected tons of twigs to carry them back into the cave.

Inside they piled up a wall of stones and rebuild the fire. Sam showed James that twirling the stick in the piece of wood as fast as possible and transferring it onto tinder could make a fire burning. He was amused by James´ reaction to the fire quickly spreading and illuminating the cave.

"Now I can finally grill those rabbits!"

He pulled them out from a dark cold corner and held them dangling in his arms as Claire screamed in horror.

"You killed those poor things!"

He grinned and looked back at her. "Duh, I´m hungry!"

"Watch out, James! Once she gets a taste of it she´ll eat everything!", warned Sam him.

"No, I won´t, this is disgusting! EW!"

Appalled she held her arms up and stretched out her tongue.

But once Sam and James grilled them under the fire and the delicious smell reached Claire´s nose she couldn´t resist anymore. After initially refusing she now sat next to Sam and nibbled on a rabbit´s leg with big hungry eyes. Once they had finished eating James went outside, the bones that were left gave him some ideas. Worried Sam watched him grinningly carving and cutting arrows and spear tips.

"Do you really think this is a good idea?"

"What do you mean?"

"Him."

Shocked Claire stared at him with wide open mouth. "What the…we can´t just leave him alone! He has nobody but us now!"

"Yeah, but don´t you think he´s kinda…"

After not finding the right words he went back and forth, trying to describe exactly how he felt about James, only in the end to flex his muscles and throw a few punches into the hair. Claire suppressed her snickering.

"What? Are you jealous?!"

His heart leaped.

"No, I´m not!", he protested.

Claire got this as wrong as it could get. Nervous he slightly backed away when she came closer to him and put her hand on his chest.

"Oh Sam, you don´t have to worry about anything…"

Worried James noticed the sudden silence. He realized that he would now be living with two crazy teens for an unknown amount of time.

"Teenagers…", tired he shook his head.

He decided to wait outside, inside he heard them bickering, so he did not even think of going back. The sun began setting and he looked sadly at it was disappearing into the ocean.

In Milwaukee they never had as beautiful sunsets like this one but that was obvious seeing how they don´t have an ocean to begin with. But no matter how stunning it was he couldn´t enjoy it. After a while Sam went out and sat next to him, his face was bright red.

"How is it going?"

"Awful.", groaned Sam and ruffled his hair.

"How come?!"

He let out a long sigh.

"I´m not like I used to be, she says...I tried to apologize…and when I thought that everything was fine she tried to…I don´t know how to deal with her."

James sensed the distress coming from his voice.

"You´re not good with girls, aren´t ya?", he remarked.

Sam rolled his eyes in embarrassment as he fell in the soft sand and covered his face with his arm. He looked through his finger at the red sky. No clouds were out, this was going to be a clear night.

"This is so embarrassing."

It made his blood boil. Everything he worked up to was destroyed in a single moment that changed his entire life by somebody he now was stuck with on an abandoned island with no chances of getting rescued.

"Man, I´m gonna be honest with you!", he turned to Sam. "I´m not buying this act! I don´t know why you did this but I know who attacked me. You´re doing some shady stuff, I saw it."

"Are you still on about this?! I thought we were over it!"

James stood up and he followed in doing so too. Nervously Sam noticed that he was slightly taller than him. He was clearly in a disadvantage when it came to fighting.

"I only said this to not upset Claire. She´s a good girl! So if you ever hurt her again or drag her into your mess, you will be in trouble!", he warned Sam as he stared directly into his eyes.

"This will be all, I´ll go back."

He left him alone on the beach and went inside. Sam´s heart still pounded from the confrontation and James´ words. Filled up with anger from all these accusations he almost burst out.

Instead of screaming in frustration he kicked the sand, stuffed his hands in his pockets and walked along the beach. Bored he picked up some stones and threw them into the water. It slowly became dark and the stars shined bright in the endless dark of the blue night sky.

Looking up at them made him feel small and lonely.

 _Why can´t I remember a single thing?!_

He ruffled his hair and accidently hit his wound. A faint cry escaped him when the pain ran like a flash through his head, which made him fall on his knees and bend over. He waited for the pain to disappear and when it passed he stood up and angrily kicked the ground below his feet. Agitated he walked up and down, while talking to himself.

"I don´t understand anything anymore!", he confessed. "It doesn´t make any sense. I could have never done this. I would never do this. This can´t be true!"

Tired he dropped his arms. No matter how much he ran around in circles and asked himself as long as he didn´t have his memories he would never receive an answer for the most important question.

"Who the hell am I?"

He stared at his trebling hands, realizing that he would never be accepted the way he was right now, neither by James nor Claire. But he wouldn´t be able to keep up pretending to be someone he felt he simply wasn´t. Then a sudden thought crossed his mind.

 _Is this even my true self now?_

 _If I remember will I finally be how I was before? Will everything be alright again? But what if…things don´t return to the way they were before?_

"What if I am changed forever?", he asked the stars.

This was the first time he saw the night sky after having lost all his memories.

Coming to enjoy the view he crossed his arms behind his back and stared at the stars for a while. He felt his eyes becoming tired and pushed himself up.

"Maybe I should go back…"

When he arrived at the cave Claire already sleeping soundly, curled up on top a lifebelt. Her face was still slightly swollen, especially her eyes and cheeks.

"Where have you been?"

He flinched by the sound of the voice. With clenched fist James stood behind the fire casting a giant shadow on the walls. It wasn't a simple question. The tone of it revealed that he wouldn't take no for an answer.

Without looking him into the eyes he replied: "Stargazing."


	6. Chapter 6

Why?

The only word he was capable of forming in his head as he fell into the deep dark water, the last thing he saw was the teen staring down on him out of wide open eyes.

Ice cold water engulfed him, locking around his body and making him unable to move. For a moment he felt nothing, neither pain nor cold, only sinking into the ocean, when the realization kicked in. Panicked he reached for the surface, gasping for air.

A sudden loud splash reached his ear, water drops sprinkled on his face. He opened his eyes, saltwater ran over his face and burned them, blurring his vision. Through his eyelashes and the faint light emitted from the ship he saw the bright orange color of a lifebelt glowing in the dark. Before the waves could wash it away any further he stretched his arm out and got ahold of it, clutching onto it and raising his head.

"HELP! HEY!"

A strong bow wave drowned his screams, turning the lifebelt and him upside down. When he managed to resurface the ship already passed him by, it's waves pushing him even further away.

"NO! NO! WAIT!"

He gritted his teeth, pushing himself forward with his legs, but he was overpowered by the strength of the ocean and it's waves.

"Don't leave me behind! Please…help me!", he cried. "Wait…"

His calls remained unanswered.

Helpless he watched the lights fading into the darkness, only being left with those of the moon and the stars. The cold crawled up his back and chest, slowly taking over his arms and dragging him down into the sea. If he wouldn't do anything it would be over. With the last bit of strength he had left he pushed himself up and lied on his back. He had fought many battles throughout this life but the hardest was yet to come: the battle against the drowsiness.

He put his arms around his chest and pulled his legs up as much as he could. His eyelids became heavy, heavier than anything he ever felt before. A small sob came from deep within his chest by the thought of his family and knowing that he was about to lose them.

And with those thoughts he slipped into a darkness deeper than the night.

Which made the light he awoke to even more surprising.

Confused he blinked at the sun shining above his head and the warmth that spread across his body. He pushed himself up, feeling something soft beneath his hands and the cold waves splashing against his feet. Thoughts and sensation rushed through him, things he wasn't supposed to feel.

"I'm alive?"

He stared at the teardrops that fell on his trembling hands. In disbelief he stared at the ocean.

This wasn't a dream. He couldn't tell why but he knew. And it was this realization that made him clench his fists and throw them into the air. A feeling that like a tremor coming from deep within the earth cracked and broke through his chest in form of a call so loud, it could have shaken the world.

"I'M ALIVE!", he burst out and leaped into the air, dancing and throwing punches.

Tears of joy streamed over his face. He broke to the ground, covering his face, barely able to breath from laughing and crying. He raised his head, feeling the warmth of the sun drying his tears.

A deep sense of gratitude towards life itself filled him, love towards the simplest things like the softness of the sand, the whispers of the wind, the strikingly blue sky, even the pain that ran across his entire body and being able to experience all of it.

"Aww, yesssss…summer, sunshine, beach, awesome view. All I'm missing is a nice hammock, sunglasses and some sweet Pina Coladaaa…wait a minute!"

Dumbfounded he turned back and forth. "Where the fuck am I? Don't tell me this is some deserted island or some shit."

After one hour of running around, shouting and looking for any sign of civilization to no avail, he sank on all fours into the sand. "Shit, this IS a deserted island."

The sky above him slowly turned into a warm orange. Soon the night would fall upon the island. His eyes fell on the cave he previously had found. Since he had no intention of staying outside in dark he stood up and peeked inside, holding the lifebelt like a shield above his chest but much to his dismay no bear or mountain lion he could wrestle with attacked him.

"Man, this sucks."

Annoyed he threw the lifebelt into a corner and inspected the holes in the ceiling, painting the cave in a dim light and the casting shadows on the walls. Sticks and leaves have fallen through them over the years, forming small piles that already closely resembled campfires.

Grinning he rubbed his hands. "Ha! I've seen enough anime to know how to do this."

He, in fact did not.

In utter confusion he stared at the broken bark and his blistering hands. For half an hour he had been trying to rub the stick between his hands until the smoke would emerge but all it did was burn his palms.

"Okay, James, of course you fail at the first time. This is all part of the hero's journey, you're supposed to doubt yourself only to be reminded of your friends and family.", he told himself as he picked up another twig and placed it in the middle of the bark. "Yes...even though we might be separated, their love will always stay with me…as long as I remind myself of that…I can do anything!"

It turned out he didn't.

Enraged he threw his hands above his head and screamed.

After letting out his frustration by kicking and throwing the bundles apart he fell on the lifebelt and stared with slanted eyes at the ceiling. "How could shit go down like this?", he asked himself. "This is crazy…"

The face of the teen who pushed him over creeped into his mind, making him rise up. His heart pumped against his chest. He covered his head, rubbing his forehead with his fingers and groaned. This has happened before. He could literally hear the voices of his sisters and his mother coming from the kitchen.

"Oh come on, Momma, it wasn't his fault! Everybody knows it!"

Upset his older sister Merlyn threw her arms into the air and was joined by their youngest sister Kim, who put her arms on her hips and raised her chin. "Yeah, Jamie only wanted to help.", she added and puckered her lips.

Their mother who despite being touched by her daughter's resolve to defend their brother shook her head.

"I know that. I also got a call from that boy's mother and how glad she was that somebody defended her son but that's no way to solve the issue."

"So what should he have done, huh? That other guy attacked first! He only defended himself!", said his third sister Laura.

"It's not as simple as that…"

"Oh actually it is. It's really fucking simple. They're just trying to lay the blame on Jamie because they don't want to admit that they failed to stop the bullying! If anybody is at fault then it's the teachers and the principal! When the bullying becomes so bad that another student has to step in because nobody else would, whose fault is it when things go down?! They're saying that it's Jamie and his anger issues but we all know that this isn't the case! This is clearly a cover up from the school authorities! I say Jamie is innocent!", declared Merlyn and slammed her fist on the table.

Amazed Laura clapped her hands. "Wow, you should become an attorney!"

"Maybe I will.", she replied confident and brushed a long braid out of her face. "Attorney Robinson sounds pretty good to me."

"Even if that's the case that doesn't change the fact that he used a technique outside the dojo on another kid."

"You mean an asshole.", corrected Laura her.

"An asshole, yes. But still a kid."

"An asshole kid!", screamed Kim with a bright smile full of tooth gaps.

"Shut your mouth!", yelled their mother and pulled her by the ear. "Where are those words even coming from?!"

Silent the four siblings exchanged a few smiles of confusion, knowing very well themselves who thought them. Suspicious Mrs. Robinson raised her eyebrows. "What?!"

Since his sisters looked quickly away to hide their laughter he took it upon himself to distract her. "Sorry, for what I did. I didn't plan for things to go down that way. I just couldn't stand there and watch…"

She let out a long sigh and stood up. She put her hand on his cheek, gently turning his face so that he had to look her in the eyes. And when he saw how full of worry and love they were he felt remorseful for the first time for what he did.

"Jamie, I know how much you want to help others, but some people…can't be helped. I know it hurts but this is just how things are…if you keep going like this, you might get hurt yourself. And I don't want to see this happen again."

"Yeah."

"I hope you learned your lesson. You can be glad that your teacher let you come along. Don't waste this opportunity."

"Yeah, I got it.", he mumbled and rolled his eyes.

"Good. Or I'll whoop your ass.", she said and slapped him on the back before pulling him into a warm embrace. "Now go and make your Mamma proud."

"Sorry, Mamma. Guess I ain't gonna do that.", he mumbled and wiped the tears off his face.

He closed his eyes, trying not to think too much about them, which was almost impossible. For the first time he missed his old bed that was already too small for him, yet he had to sleep in it since they didn't have enough money to buy a new one. He missed the laughter and chatter of his sisters that would normally keep him awake the entire night, and never has he wished more for his mother to burst into the room and wake him up in the most violent way possible.

Although he certainly didn't mind the rays of light gently kissing him awake as much as he initially thought.

With his hands on his hips he stood outside the cave and took a deep breath. He couldn't tell why but by the warmth of the sun he felt a little less lonely, even a little spark of confidence.

"Aw, yesss. Awesome weather, nice view…the only thing missing is my Pina Colada!"

His eyes wandered to the coconuts hanging high in the palm trees. Just the sight of them he could feel the burning fire in his throat and the dryness of his lips. He stretched his muscles and asserted the height and distance before running towards the wall and pushing himself off of it. Skillfully he grabbed onto the palm tree and climbed it up. Once he reached the top he put his hands around a coconut. Under his weight it slowly descended towards the ground where he ripped it off and watched the palm tree bouncing back to its original position. Triumphant he held it into the sky.

"Awesome, no all I gotta do is…", he picked up a stone and sat on the ground, holding it tight before breaking it into two halves. Sweet juice ran down his throat, like rain pouring down in the Sahara.

"Damn, this tastes almost better than justice…or should I say…juicestice?!"

His roaring laughter made the birds rise into the sky. Surprised by their sudden appearance he raised his head, following their way to the horizon.

"What should I do? Should I just stay here and wait until a ship gets by or go search help?"

The thought of leaving the beach and thus missing his chance of getting rescued lingered in his head. Trusting his instincts he decided to stay here, at least for a few days just to make sure.

"Ha, I'm sure they gonna come pick me up tomorrow."

They didn't.

Groaning he held his stomach after the third day of waiting. All the creatures that got washed ashore were no use to him since he still had no fire to grill them and although he at first loved the taste of the coconuts he started craving for real water and real food.

The fourth day he stood up. Fear crawled in him and tightened the grip around his heart. What if they forgot him? What if nobody would come to save him? What if he would be stuck here forever?

"What am I gonna do?"

The wind rose, gently rustling the leaves of the forest growing just a few meters away from the beach.

"I can't just stay there and wait to be saved. Guess I gotta do it myself.", he put his hands around his mouth and yelled at the sky. "You hear this?! I don't even want your help! I'm an strong independent black man who don't need no…woman! "

He raised his middle finger at the ocean and whoever was on the other side of it. Proudly he marched away and picked a stick along the way up.

"Is this what it means to become a hero? To leave everything behind, to find your own way? Can I take this risk, knowing that I may never return?", he shook his head, grinning at his own doubts. "No, this is the path I must chose. I can't let my fear of the unknown lead me astray from the journey of a becoming a true man!"

Hollering and with the weapon raised above his head he ran into the forest. Green light calmed his eyes after days of staring at the bright blue sky and beach. Relaxed he strolled around, listening to the beautiful sounds of nature, including the high pitched screams of fighting.

Flakes of brown fur rose into the air as their claws scratched, their long teeth blinked in the sun before they buried them in their opponents skin. Fascinated James watched the hares clashing against each other in an intense battle of strength of who would regain the right over the territory. Ferociously the larger hare chased his smaller rival away from the high grass and kicked him in the chest. And fell along with him over a cliff.

"What the fuck?! Yoooooooo!"

Shocked he ran towards the small cliff and peeked over the edge, where he found them twitching in their last moments on the ground. Sensing the opportunity he slid down the steep and raised his stick, poking them several times.

A bright grin crossed his face after realizing what this meant. "Free dinner, whoooo!"

Whistling and with two hares in each hand he skipped back towards his cave. Nothing could make this day better.

Nothing except for the person down the beach.

In utter shock he dropped the hares in both his hands and jumped behind a tree.

"Yo James, stay cool. Don't freak out. This is nothing. It's not like you're almost losing your shit because this is the very first time in five days since you've seen another human being and you want to do nothing else but throw yourself at them and cry for joy since that means you aren't left alone in the battle against the cold harsh forces of nature and destructive feelings anymore."

He took a deep breath before raising his voice. "Hey! Are you stranded too?!"

Trying to look as professional as possible he jumped straight down from the wall and landed in front of him.

"Yeah! It has been four days. Were you on the ship too?"

His heart stopped. He recognized the sound of the voice. Slowly he raised his head and looked the teen right into the face. The very same face he saw before he fell into the cold dark water.

Pure terror filled him.

"Wait a minute. Aren´t you…!", he eyed him again, just to make sure he wasn't mistaken. "Oh no! Back off, or I´ll destroy you!"

"Wait, WHAT?!"

"GET OUTTA HERE! YOU AIN`T MESSIN WITH ME!"

He has had enough. Before even he himself has thought of it his body already reacted. With wide open eyes the teen touched his burning cheek where he hit him.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!"

Confused he shook his head. He didn't expect this kind of question. "What is wrong with YOU?!"

With clenched fist he watched him running away and disappearing into the forest. Once he was sure that the teen was gone he sank to the ground, staring at the sand beneath his feet. A strange feeling swirled in his chest. Maybe it was anger and maybe a little fear. His grip around the spear tightened. He would return. It would be only a matter of time. Determined he sharpened his weapon.

He thought of himself as being well prepared for when they would meet again. Only that he didn't expect that there would be three of them.

"Nice to meet you, James, I´m Claire…and this is Sam."

He had seen her too. Or rather heard her. She had a beautiful voice and a heartwarming smile. Like his little sister Kim.

"We should team up. Being alone must have been tough. What do you think?"

His heart leaped. It was tough. Tougher than any fight he ever fought before. A long fight he was sure he couldn't win. Of course he would join them. Even if it meant having to be faced everyday with Sam, who claimed to not remember anything anymore. "Why did you do this? Why did you throw me overboard?! All I wanted was to help you!", he thought as he watched him walk away after having him told off.

Whatever reason he had it couldn't be a good one. Something was wrong with this guy. His mother was right. Some people can't be helped. He now was trapped on a deserted island because of it. But he couldn't just abandon Claire. She had nobody else to protect her. Nobody except for him.

James clenched his fists.

"Sorry, Momma…"


	7. Chapter 7

„Where are you going?!"

Sam felt his heart leaping. Slowly he turned around to Claire standing at the entrance of the cave. He cursed himself for not leaving earlier. Embarrassed he stared at the ground.

"Exploring.", he replied.

"I thought that maybe we could talk…", she suggested shyly.

"Sorry, I don't have time right now."

Quickly he threw his backpack over his shoulder and left as fast as he could. He still heard her calling for him, but it only made him run faster into the woods.

Silent she stood in front of the cave until he disappeared out of her eyesight. Heartbroken she headed back inside.

"He left, huh?", stated James relieved. The less he had to see his face the safer he felt.

Satisfied he made himself comfortable on his sleeping place and stretched his legs out. Noticing how she still stood at the entrance he raised his eyebrow.

"Did something happen between you two?"

Her nose turned red and before he saw it coming big tears fell from her face. Confused he jumped up and ran towards her. "What did he do?!", he asked aggressive.

If he did something to her that he didn´t notice yesterday than he was pretty lucky he left because otherwise he would have crushed every single bone, swore James to himself. But to his surprise Claire shook her head and sniffed.

"He did nothing! It…it was me!"

At first he thought he misunderstood her.

"What?! Why would you say that?"

"Because I was so horrible to him yesterday!", she burst out. "I just…let everything out on him!"

Whatever happened yesterday Sam hid it pretty well from him. He already had a guess but he wasn´t completely sure.

Side by side they sat next to each other in the sand and stared at the ocean.

"I…I was just so frustrated", she whispered. "He is like a completely different person now…I thought I could deal with it but now I´m not even sure anymore…"

Absent minded she drew some lines into the sand and watched the waves brushing them away, remembering the times when he still used to shower her with affections. "He was always smiling and having fun, cracking jokes and cheering everybody up and now he is so…serious…and acting so cold. The Sam I knew was always so kind and caring..."

Bewildered James listened to her story. From what he gathered this guy must have had at least a secret double life and or was abducted by the illuminati who wiped his memories.

"It just hurts so much. He forgot everything, including me…but it isn´t his fault…and when he apologized…I…", embarrassed she covered her face.

She couldn´t say it out loud. The memory alone was painful enough. Seeing her crying silently over him reminded James painfully of his sisters. If things had gone his way he would have been already on his way to shred Sam into pieces but right now Claire needed him more.

Wondering she stared at the sky.

"I wonder where he is right now…"

Sam enjoyed the warm sun, the breeze, the salty smell of the sea and the endless blue of the sky as he traveled through the western part of the forest and arrived by another river. Curious he stood at the edge of the water. The sudden urge to jump right in was so strong that he took off his clothes and shoes and dipped right in. The cold water was like a blessing under the hot tropical sun and he felt confident when he discovered that he was an excellent swimmer. His mind may have forgotten but his body apparently didn´t.

Maybe I will remember more along the journey, he wondered.

He went out of the water and picked up his clothes, carrying them to the other side of the river where he climbed up the wall. Standing on top of the rock formation he gazed upon the landscape. Again and again he wondered how big this island must be, seeing how it had several small forests. He shielded his eyes from the sun as he looked up, staring at the blue giant towering over the entire island. From up there he could get a great look and maybe watch the sea for ships.

"If I just could climb up that mountain…", he muttered.

But today wasn't the day.

For a second he hesitated but then turned around, put his shoes and pants on and left for news places to explore. Brimming with excitement he ran down the with trees covered hill and landed on soft grass. Immediately he noticed the strong fresh smell that hung in the moist air. Curious he approached the groove from which the scent came and let his hands wander over the strong bright green bamboo stalks.

"Wow, I never knew I could find some here!"

He pulled out his trusty knife of his backpack and let it run across the stems, leaving small carvings on them. Apart from his spear they had no other weapon or tools but this find could improve their chances of surviving. The ideas were racings through his mind.

"Maybe I can make a fishing rod…or some furniture! Oh, man I can´t wait to show it to…!"

Sam stopped for a second. He almost completely forgot what has happened. A sudden cold spread through his stomach.

"Shit.", he mumbled.

The memory of Claire coming closer and pulling him down towards her lips would haunt him to his death. Frantic he walked in circles.

"I didn´t do on purpose, okay!? It was a reflex! I mean… I don´t even know her!", he stopped for a moment and raised his arms. "Okay, apparently I used to know her but I don´t remember a single thing! Argh, this is so stupid!"

Groaning he fell on the grass and rubbed his face. But no matter how much he tried the memory of Claire´s heartbroken face just wouldn´t disappear along with the guilt.

"I´m sorry. I´m really, really sorry…I didn´t want to hurt you…"

He didn´t even know why he pushed her away. They were supposed to be together, he was her boyfriend after all.

But then why did it feel just so wrong?

Everything about his story was so bizarre. And James topped if off with his weird accusations that didn´t make any sense.

"Who were those guys anyway? And what did they want from me? What the hell happened on that goddamn ship?"

Angered he sat on the grass and closed his eyes. He remembered seeing Claire in the ballroom and a man on the deck but that was it. Having too many questions and not enough answers he pulled the notebook he had found in his backpack and straightened the pages.

The moment he let the pen run across the paper he felt a sense of security and order flowing through him, calming the sea of emotions that stirred in him. Around him the world disappeared for a while until he heard a sudden rustle behind him.

Alerted he raised his head and dropped his pen.

"What the hell?!", he whispered. "What was that?!"

His heart pounded and he felt the adrenaline rushing through his body, turning his muscles hard. Instinctively he reached for one of the stalks, gripping it so tightly his skin turned white.

Slowly he turned around and found himself face to face with a deer.

Surprised he dropped the weapon. Without paying attention the young female stalked past him. It was slightly smaller than him and was covered in a spotted mahogany fur. At a point it came so close that he could see the long eyelashes that crowned its dark black eyes.

For a short moment they looked each other in the eyes. Sam could no longer feel his heart beating. As if it was inviting him the deer turned its head around and went deeper into the forest. Intrigued he packed his belongings back inside and followed it.

Keeping his distance he pushed further inwards. He climbed over fallen logs and pushed leaves aside, feeling like he was dragged into another world.

The bamboo disappeared and was slowly replaced by enormous trees, overgrown with vines and moss just like the uneven ground.

Finally he arrived at a crystal clear pond and dropped his backpack. A few rays of sunshine that managed to break through the dense leaf canopy and painted a golden glow on the water´s surface.

"How peaceful…"

When he came closer to the water a group of small fish spread out, hiding in between the gently moving tang. He put both his hands into it and poured it over his face. Water ran down his neck and chest, soaking his shirt and leaving a tingling sensation on his skin.

The refreshing cold sharpened his senses, making him more aware of the lives that surrounded him than before throughout the day.

His ears twitched by the sound of a group of deer traveling through the forest from afar. At first only a few females appeared and moved towards the pond, accompanied by an enormous male, whose head was crested by two crown like antlers.

Carefully he pulled his diary out and let the pen run across the paper, trying to capture this rare moment. As fast as possible he drew the outlines, fearing that stag would move away before he could finish it. When he looked up again it raised its head and stared Sam right into the eyes from across the pond.

With a light splash the pen fell into the water.

Taken aback he stumbled backwards and covered his face. He had seen something like that before.

"What the…", he muttered. "What was that?"

His sudden movement must have startled them because immediately the deer left the pond and returned to the depths of the forest. Disappointed he watched them disappearing one after another before he left the male stood still one last time. Sam slowly picked up his backpack, put his book inside and backed respectfully away. Not wanting to take any chances he went back to the bamboo groove.

Thanks to the tracks he left behind in the moss he found his way without walking in circles. Still amazed by the encounter he pulled the drawing out and refined it. When he was finally satisfied with the result he put it back and took out his knife.

"I almost forgot why I came here in the first place.", he laughed.

Loud carving sounds echoed through the small groove. One stalk after another fell to the ground and was tied together with a tree vine he found back then in the jungle.

Exhausted Sam lied on the ground after having cut so many stalks that he would have a hard time carrying them all. Above his head the sun began descending into the sea while he waited for his strength to return. At one point he had to go back, even if he didn´t want to.

"Oh man."

 _How will they react? Will they be mad at me? Or did they already kick me out?_

Lost in his thoughts Sam threw the bundle of stalks over his shoulder and marched up the hill that separated the bamboo grove from the river.

 _Well in the end, I kicked myself out. You cannot kick somebody out who already left but now I´m coming back so they CAN kick me out._

Frustrated he threw his arms into the air and groaned. Every single step towards the beach, every little move became more heavy and he prayed for them not to be there waiting for him, although he knew that in the end it remained wishful thinking.

"Oh, you´re back! How was your day?"

There they stood in front of the cave, Claire with her blonde hair shining red in the setting sun and James who glared at him out of obsidian like eyes. With crossed arms he observed Sam coming towards them.

"Where have you been?!", he snarled at him.

 _I have been on a spiritual journey, cleansed my body from all my worries and fears, explored an unknown territory in hopes to find answers, found resources I can use in order to defend myself from further harm and encountered the king of the forest._

"Walking around…"

"You´ve been walking around for at least half a day.", said James angered, still suspicious about his absence.

Barely able to refrain himself from rolling his eyes Sam pulled up the stack of bamboo from behind and put it on the ground.

"I actually had a lot to do. Like, collecting bamboo, writing in my notebook, taking a bath and mapping the island…hey, wait a second, why do I have to justify myself?!"

"We were only worried where you´ve been.", she explained.

"She was, not me."

"Jay-Jay!", upset Claire hit him on the shoulder and glared at him but he only shrugged his shoulders and grinned.

 _Jay-Jay?!_

"I see you got around pretty well without me...", concluded Sam. He would lie if he said that he wasn´t worried about this development.

"Oh, no, it would have been nice if you were her with us, we tried making dinner outside today, and yesterday you said you went stargazing so I thought we might do the same!"

 _If you had known why I went´ stargazing´ you wouldn´t probably propose that idea…_

"Great idea!", he lied.

Excited she clapped her hands and guided him to their fire place but before he could sit down with her he carried the stack of bamboo inside the cave.

As he put it on the ground he noticed a dark shadow towering over him. Behind stood James blocking the entrance with his broad shoulders. Not wanting to spark another conflict Sam chose to ignore him but the moment he walked past him he felt his hand on his shoulder.

"What is it?", he asked with a low voice.

"Claire told me a lot about you today…she really loves you a lot. It may not look like it but she was pretty upset by what you did. I guess you had your reason but you should still apologize to her."

Surprised by his calm response Sam raised his eyebrows.

"You´re right…thank you for reminding me."

He went outside and saw her sitting on the log next to the guitar, smiling happily.Despite what happened yesterday night she did a good job of putting a cheerful facade.

Awkwardly he raised his hand. "Hey…can I sit next to you?"

She gave him a bright smile and moved aside. Knowing that this was the best opportunity and probably the only one he could get he took a deep breath.

"I wanted to tell you something…", he said. "No, I wanted to apologize to you…for yesterday…"

Both their faces turned bright red and she turned away in embarrassment. This was one of the most uncomfortable conversations she ever had.

"No, it should be me who has to apologize. I know you´re still confused about the whole situation. This must be hard for you…"

"Yeah…it kinda is…"

"You know.", she put her hand over his. "From now on let's take things slowly on. I won´t pressure you into doing something you don´t want to."

He let out a sigh of relief. Knowing that it would make her happy he gave her a warm hug. "Thank you, Claire. I´ll make sure to get my memory back."

"Don´t worry….I´ll be waiting.", she whispered.

Their reunion was observed by James who gave Sam a short nod. Subtly he nodded back. Maybe they could get along after all.

Without a word James sat down on the other side of the fire and closed his eyes as Claire's voice danced around them along with the drums of the guitar. Even Sam found himself feeling strangely calm by the sound of the familiar melody. After she finished her song he carefully tapped her by the shoulder.

"Can I?"

"Why?", she asked surprised.

"Maybe if I play a bit I will remember something…", Sam mumbled and blushed after seeing her smiling with excitement.

It took him a few seconds before he finally got it in the right position. Full of anticipation Claire nudged closer to him, even James raised his head and overserved the unfolding event.

Sam closed his eyes, trying to remember the melody. When he recreated a chord he believed to resemble the one Claire played he mustered all his courage.

He took a deep breath and raised his voice.

A sound that could only be described as resembling a whale´s mating call echoed through the night, followed by roaring laughter. His attempt to throw guitar into the fire was prevented just in time by James who got ahold of him and Claire who pulled the instrument out of his hands. With crossed arms and a red face he sat on the log and turned away.

"Never again!", he declared embarrassed.

Claire´s and James´ laughs lasted almost the entire night.


	8. Chapter 8

Unaware of the danger close to it the pigeon descended on the ground in search for worms and little insects. Just a few meters away a pair of dark eyes followed its every single movement.

"AAAAAH!"

A big shadow emerged between the bushes and leaped towards the small bird. Startled it opened its wings and quickly escaped to a tree from which it curiously stared at the teen yelling and swearing at it.

"Damn it! This already the third time!"

Angrily he hit the trunk another time and stuffed his hands into his pockets. Disappointed he turned around and made his way through the forest.

"Stupid ass bird!", he grumbled.

His mood got even worse when he saw his two fellow castaways back at the beach, sitting on broad logs which they set up in front of the cave. Excited Claire waved her arm when she saw him.

"There you are! How did the hunt go?!"

Disappointed he stared at his empty hands. They were full of scratches and bruises but it was all for nothing.

"Sorry, I had no luck this time…", he admit. "But hey, wanna hear a bird joke?!"

"No.", Sam groaned in response.

Annoyed he looked at the ladder who continued to stare concentrated at the fire, straight up ignoring him. Expecting this kind of answer James´ smile got brighter.

"Well, that's hawkward!"

Claire burst out into laughter, and it got even louder when she saw Sam´s annoyed expression.

"Oh, James!", she giggled. "I´m so happy you joined us, please never change!"

Proud of his achievement to piss Sam off and make Claire laugh he brushed through his hair and he sat down on the log right next to her. The smell of grilled food made his stomach growl.

"Where did you get all that fish from?!"

"Oh, you should have seen this! Sam´s idea was pretty amazing!", she told him with shining eyes. "Come on, tell him!"

Flustered he scratched his cheek.

"It´s really not that complicated. I just noticed the many puddles which are full of fish during a tide…", he explained. "So we made a small wall and waited a while for them to get trapped. We even caught some shrimp."

With a bright smile Claire handed him a large fish pierced on a stick. Unsure he chewed on it and if Sam hadn´t caught it he would have actually enjoyed it.

Envious he glared at the older teen. He must have noticed it because shortly after he sent an evil stare back.

"What a psycho…", they thought of each other.

Claire, unaware of the mental showdown that was unfolding around her stared sighing at the sky. Before she used to eat scarcely, afraid that her fans and viewers would perceived her differently if she would have gained weight but now she wished she never did. She held her stomach, cursing herself of having deprived herself of the pleasure for such a reason. Yearning she watched the seagulls playing catch with the wind. How much she craved for something different to eat apart from the things the sea offered.

"How nice it would be if we could eat chicken…", she sighed. "If only we could catch something…"

Noticing his tattered jeans and leaves in his hair Sam wondered how many times he must have fallen to the ground. It must have been quite frustrating for him.

"Why don´t you just build a trap, James?", he asked with a small smirk on his face.

Angry he squint his eyes, realizing that Sam knew that he couldn´t catch one up until now.

"I would if I had any idea how to build one but too bad I never learned it because I never expected to get thrown off a ship and strand on a deserted island!", he said and grinned at him.

It was only now that Claire noticed the growing tension between the two. Without looking away she grabbed a coconut next to her and put a small stalk inside.

"Here it goes…", she whispered and started drinking out of it, while constantly shifting her gaze between the two.

Trying not to get his anger and growing frustration the better of him Sam tried to come up with a mature response.

"At least I try to do something so that we don´t starve to death, unlike a certain someone who treats this whole thing as a joke.", he replied calmly.

This was the last straw James needed to finally snap the twig between his hands and throw it into the fire. With wide eyes he pointed his fingers at Sam.

"Oh, you´ll just wait. I will hunt something and then we´ll see who…starves the last!"

He turned around and kneeled down at Claire's feet.

"Please wait for me! I swear, I won´t stop until I get a _Poulet de Provence_ for you, Claire!"

"Oh, James!"

Touched she placed her coconut drink aside and put her hand over her heart. Before he left she gave him a spear and a water bottle. Dramatically he waltzed away.

Worried she watched him leaving the beach and disappearing into the woods. Once he was gone she turned around to Sam with her hand on her hips, feeling the anger swirling up in her.

"Good job, Sam! Now he´s gone! Can´t you two just get along with each other?!"

He closed his eyes and chuckled.

"Oh my sweet summer child, there is so much that you don´t know…Just like the sun and moon we´re chasing each other in circles, so close…yet far away…and never meant to be together…", he told as he dreamingly stared at the ocean.

"Oh, Sam…that was beautiful…", she gasped.

 _It worked!_

Content he crossed his arms behind his head and let the sun warming up his body. Now that James was gone he finally could get some rest from the constant stares, pranks and jokes. Remembering to keep up the diary, he grabbed for his bag and opened it. The pages were full of illuminati signs and other cryptic symbols and commentary.

"JAMES!"

Confused he raised his head. He was sure to have heard somebody shouting his name.

"The wild is calling me!", he whispered ominously.

Holding the spear high he walked deeper into the forest. The terrain he entered was still mostly unexplored. None of them knew how big the island actually was but just by looking at the forest it must have been quite large, James assumed.

The lush green trees under which he walked provided shelter for all forms of wildlife, small shrews rustled in the grass and once or twice a squirrel. After a while he heard the familiar cooing sound of a wild pigeon above his head.

"You!"

He almost oversaw the black shimmering body with the small head sitting on a branch. From afar it could have been easily mistaken for a crow. It looked nothing like the plain grey pigeons he was used to seeing in the city.

Knowing that he couldn´t climb on the tree he ignored it.

There was no point in wasting his time hunting a prey he wouldn´t be able to catch so he continued his way. Looking from the map he found in Sam´s diary there was a river nearby.

"Something tells me that I may find something around the water."

Aimlessly he wandered around and to his surprise he found himself passing the same tree two times.

"What the hell, man?!", he wondered.

He slowed down and closed his eyes. Intensely he listened to the sounds of nature, which were nothing like the ones he heard in Milwaukee, seeing how they didn´t have much nature to begin with.

In between the occasional random animal scream and rustling of the leaves he heard the faint ripple of a nearby stream. Triumphant he clenched his fists and jumped up.

"Gotcha!"

In his assumption wherever there was a body of water he would find something that would drink out of it. Animals tended to gather around a creek, especially during midday, the hottest time of the day.

"Weird, what are those?"

Wondering he kneeled over the small impressions in the mud and scratched his head. Those patterns didn´t resemble anything he had ever seen before. Until now they never encountered any larger animals, let alone any dangerous ones, but that didn´t mean that there weren't any living here

"Maybe there are lions living here?", he wondered and the grip around his spear tightened. "Awesome, I always wanted to have a fur coat or at least a cool scar!"

Noticing more traces of animal footprints on the ground he followed the trails down a path.

Excited he ran down and fought his way to the river but once he arrived at the creek a small group of pheasants, startled by the approaching noise, flapped their wings and disappeared screaming into the thicket.

"Goddammit!", he yelled frustrated and stomped on the grass. "Why?! Why does this keep happening to me?!"

He was so sure he could use his strength and speed for survival but now he found himself with an empty stomach. Wondering he stared at the water. It was impossible for him to build a trap from the scratch and hope for an animal to get caught. It would take time and the knowledge of building one, none of them which he had.

He could hear Sam snickering in the back of his head. Just the thought of returning without anything made his blood boil. Before he realized it he accidently broke the spear apart.

"Great …"

Annoyed he threw it away and sat down by a nearby in moss covered rock, remembering the time when he lost his fight against a much smaller opponent during a match.

"Urgh!"

He landed hard on the ground and blinked disoriented at the ceiling. The shocked gasps and whispers of his fellow karateka didn´t annoy him as much as the triumphant smile of the teen towering over him and the small nod of his teacher who appeared right next to them.

"This is enough. Thank you, Mark."

"Yes, Sensei."

Stunned he pulled himself up and joined his friends, who nervously moved aside. None of them dared to say a word. They´d never seen him getting beaten so easily. The rest of the lesson he paid no longer attention, the shock of the defeat made him forget his surroundings. By the times everybody already left he was still staying with clenched fists in the dojo, waiting for his sensei to tell him the truth. But instead of coming towards him he calmly meditated.

Realizing that he would continue unless he would say something he stepped forward.

"Why did I lose? You told me I was your strongest student!"

Mister Hayashi raised his head and stared out of the window. A light chuckle escaped him.

"I knew that this would happen."

"Then why did you let me fight him if you knew that I´d lose? That´s not cool, man!", he stared in disbelief at his teacher who calmly stood up and wiped the dust off his uniform.

"Have you ever heard of the Weber-Fechner law?", when he saw James shaking his head he continued. "It refers to two laws in the field of psychophysics, also known as human perception."

"And what does it have to do with karate?!", he asked impatient.

"A lot actually. Maybe if you would start paying attention at school you would learn something. You possess discipline and determination that I´ve rarely seen in my lifetime as a karate teacher...it makes me wonder why I don´t hear the same thing from the teachers at your school."

"I don´t know okay?! Yeah okay, I admit, sometimes I draw blue arrows on my arms and shoot paper airplanes but seriously, apart from English and Drama everything is so boring. Oh, and because the teachers are assholes.", he added.

"Maybe they are. After all they´re teachers.", he replied with a smirk.

"Yeah, not all of them are. I mean, you´re a teacher and you´re fine."

"Even if I let you run into a fight you would lose?"

"Okay, that wasn´t cool. I already suck hard at school. This is the only thing I´m good at, or at least I thought I was...", he mumbled. "Why can´t you just tell me where I went wrong?"

"Because I believe that you can learn important lessons on your own. There will be moments in your life where you will be alone and I cannot be there for you."

Worried he stared at his teacher. The thought of him no longer being there one day made him shudder.

"But right now you are.", he argued and smiled awkwardly.

He let out a hearty laugh and shook his head.

"I guess I really am."

Eagerly James sat down and watched his sensei exercising and although he was an elderly man he performed the katas with elegance and preciseness.

"I understand why you want to be the best but you can´t force improvement by simply being the strongest.", he said and looked James directly into the eyes. "If you want to speed up you have to slow down."

"I have no idea what you mean by that!", he whined and threw his hands into the air. "Why you always speaking in riddles?!"

Visibly amused by his confusion Hayashi Sensei sat by his side and patted his shoulder.

"Because I´m the old crazy karate master from next door."

Looking back now Hayashi-Sensei was probably the closest of a grandfather he ever had, but just as often, you come to appreciate something when it´s no longer there.

Just like his teacher used to do James sat on his knees and closed his eyes. He had ignored the spiritual aspect of karate for too long.

For the first minutes he nervously twitched. His consciousness was filled with thousands of irrelevant thoughts buzzing in his mind. But the longer he sat the weaker they became.

"Speed up, slow down…"

He stood up and repeated the Heian Shodan Katas but much slower than he usually would. It felt much more intense than before, every single muscle burned and the sweat was running down his face but now he noticed the small twitches in his techniques, the blind spots.

"So that´s what he meant! Man, was I stupid!", he laughed in surprise.

He went to the edge of the water to cool his face, when he suddenly heard as faint rustling just a few meters away from him. Surprised his body froze, even his breathing stopped for a few seconds. Right in front of him appeared a green pheasant breaking through the bushes.

Carefully he followed the bird around the river, always making sure to keep a safe distance. "Focus…James…focus!", he repeated in his head. "Slow down!"

Like a predator he blended into the dark green fauna and stalked the unaware prey to a small clearing. His whole body was burning with energy but he kept it under control.

As if all his strength and speed were challenged into one single movement, directed at one single target, he went into a trance like state. The pheasant came so close James could see every single feather.

"Now!"

The last thing it saw was a dark shadow leaping towards it.

"You´re back!"

Relieved Claire saw him returning from his day long trip, tired but nonetheless satisfied. Incredibly thankful she gave him a hug and took the bird to prepare it for dinner.

Sam coldly replied that by the end of the day it didn´t matter who brought food as long as they had something to eat. Triumphant James chewed on a leg and watched him being visibly envious of his catch.

"Speak for yourself, pheasant!"


	9. Chapter 9

„You look like shit. "

Cracking with laughter James held his stomach by the sight of his two fellow castaways. Claire´s hair was a mess and Sam had such dark circles under his eyes that he looked more devoid of any life than usual. Tired they rubbed their faces and stretched their arms.

"Ouch! My back is killing me!", she complained. Up until now they´ve been sleeping on the hard ground and after a week it took its toll on them. Annoyed Sam massaged his shoulder.

"How come you don´t feel anything?", he asked James irritated.

"A true karateka knows no pain!"

Confidently he demonstrated a few moves but when he was about to do a round kick Sam heard a light cracking sound and watched him twitching in pain on the ground.

"Yeah, but seriously we have to do something about this! Can´t we just build a bed?"

A sudden spark flashed through their heads. Upon the realization the three looked with tired eyes at each other.

"Why didn´t we think of this earlier…?"

Over the course of the whole morning the three ran to the forest and back to the cave, their arms packed full with bamboo stalks and thick logs. By the entrance they put them on the ground and tried tying the logs together with the tree vines they found in the jungle but the frame they intended to build quickly fell apart.

"Argh, this won´t work!", complained Sam annoyed. "What are we doing wrong?"

"Maybe we need more tree vines?"

In deep thought Claire asserted the situation. Even if they would use more like James suggested the logs would probably still fall apart.

"What if we cut a V into each end of the logs and put them on top of each other? That way they´ll fit together..."

Surprised the boys raised their heads and stared at her.

"Hey…that´s…actually a pretty good idea.", Sam admit. "It will take some time but if we had some sharp stones we can carve the shape it into the wood…"

Proud James slapped on her back. "That´s my girl!"

Embarrassed she put her hands on her cheeks and turned away. "Oh stop it, you!"

After a short discussion Claire headed back to the forest to collect more tree vines while the boys walked across the beach in search for sharp stones. It didn´t take them long to find them and a few sharp shells in addition. Amazed James picked up a conch shell and held it against his ear. Curious he blew into it but it made only a muted sound.

"If we pierce a few holes into it, maybe we can communicate over long distances.", suggested Sam.

"I guess it wouldn´t hurt to take it with us. Then we can use it like some sort of emergency call…"

Carefully he put the giant shell into his bag next to the stones they found, while Sam shielded his eyes from the sun and stared at the ocean. Something caught his attention. Quickly he took off his shoes, rolled up his trousers and waded through the water.

"Where are you going?"

"There´s something in the water.", he yelled back and pulled a white rubber fabric out of the sea.

"Wait."

Impressed Sam watched how James carried the heavy fabric to the shore with ease. No matter how much he tried he couldn´t imagine attacking him, let alone being able to throw him off a ship.

Noticing his stare he snarled at him. "What?! You have a problem?!"

"Nothing…", he mumbled. "You know…I just wanted to tell you that I´m sorry for almost killing you…I´ll make sure to remember why…"

"Eh, I get that all the time!", he shrugged. "You better give me a damn good reason!"

He punched Sam on the shoulder, who laughed awkwardly in response. " Ouch!", he whispered and rubbed the spot where he got it. If he wanted to James could probably break every single bone in his body. With an unsure feeling he followed him down the path to the beach. For some reason his behavior towards him has slightly changed but he wasn´t sure why until one of their earlier conversation came back to his mind.

" _Claire told me a lot about you today…she really loves you a lot."_

Surprised he opened his eyes and stopped walking. Noticing this James also halted and turned around. "What is it?", he asked suspicious.

"I just noticed something…", Sam replied. "I don´t even know how I feel about Claire."

Wondering James put down the fabric. "Don´t you like her? I mean, she is funny, kind…hot…makes me wonder how you got her in the first place."

"No, it´s not like that. I do like her but I don´t know if it´s more than….I don´t know…"., he hesitated and stared wondering at the sky. "James…what is love?"

"Baby don´t hurt me!"

"What?"

"Nothing…", he mumbled and crossed his arms. "I guess it´s hard to say, seeing how you don´t remember anything about her and your relationship in the first place. You can't really love somebody you don't know…no?"

Interested he leaned forward. Up to now she never told him much about their former lives. He only had a glimpse of who he used to be.

"Say…did she say anything about me?"

"She told me you had daddy issues….it's not that I'm not familiar with this."

"Oh…"

Both of them turned silent. Not knowing how to continue the conversation they picked up the big sail and carried it over their shoulders to the cave, where Claire was already waiting for them.

"What is that? A sail?", she asked surprised. "This is great, we can use this as a mattress!"

"We thought so too, that´s why we brought it, although it kinda smells funny."

"Well, we can still clean it."

Now that they had all the materials they needed Sam and James started cutting the V-shape into the wood, while Claire cleaned the sail outside. Since his hands started to hurt after a while Sam put the rock down and took a break.

Wondering he stared at her back, which grabbed James´ attention.

"Just ask her!", he whispered and pointed his thumb at her.

"I can´t, this is too embarrassing!"

"Dude, she´s your girlfriend!"

Their arguments became so heated that Claire put the sail down and walked towards them. "What's going on?"

Before he could stop him James opened his mouth. "Yeah, we´ve been wondering how did you two met."

Mischievous he glanced at Sam and gave him a smug smile. Angry he clutched the stone he held and rammed it into the log.

 _James, you´ll get payback for this!_

Surprised she raised an eyebrow and stared at Sam who´s face turned slightly red.

"Yeah, you never told me…I´d kinda like to know more about…us."

A small giggle escaped her. "I always forget that you forgot everything! But oh well. Children, this is how I got together with…Sam."

As if she was telling a fairy tale she clapped her hands and closed her eyes. "It was in early autumn, we just started dating and walking around in Montreal when we crossed a bridge. I kinda got carried away and danced on the railing when I slipped and fell into the river."

Sam closed his eyes. Although he had no memories he could picture exactly how this could have happened.

"And when I thought that this was the end, you jumped into the river and pulled me out. After that I invited you home and from this point on things just…fell together."

She smiled bittersweet. It hurt a little, not being able to share the same precious moments anymore but she still clutched to the hope that he might remember one day.

"So this is how you met? Sam, I never you were such a hero!"

"Me neither."

"But you really are. And since you have no memories of it I wanted to say it to you again…thank you for saving me and thank you…", she stretched her arm out and gazed over the ocean. "…for going through this together with me. And I believe that as long as we…"

"Wait, where´s the sail?"

Claire´s smile dropped. "Oh my god! I totally forgot! Wait, no!"

Screaming she ran into the water and pulled it back to the shore while the boys enjoyed the unfolding drama.

"See…that wasn´t so bad. You haven´t changed that much…you just need to be more confident in yourself."

"I guess I just want to be somebody who protects her…", he mumbled and watched how she fell head over toes into the water and started to cry. "From herself…", he added.

"Good luck with that, dude!"

Annoyed she wrung the salty sea water out of her hair and looked down on herself in disgust. "My legs! Why hasn´t anyone told me how hairy my legs are! I look like an animal!"

"Claire, who the hell cares, we´re on a deserted island. That shit is totally normal!", threw James back.

Sighing Sam took off his shirt which he handed to her. While she was rubbing her face dry James slid to his side and whispered into his ear. "No word about that razor in your bag, okay?"

Slightly worried Sam watched her pulling seaweed out of her hair and going inside the cave, wondering how she didn´t notice that they didn´t grow beards during the time they spend together. Remembering that they still had a lot to do he picked up the stone and continued working. Shortly after Claire came out, carrying his backpack over her shoulder.

"Guys, I noticed that we used up all of our provisions. I´ll go search some food for us, okay?"

"Take care. See you soon."

Without looking up the boys continued their work, thanks to James´ strength they were done fairly quickly and carried the logs inside where they stacked them over each other and tied them together.

"Wow, it really holds together now!"

"Yeah, without Claire we would have probably continued to sleep on the ground…"

Together they filled the frame and covered the stalks with the sail. After they finished the bed they swept the ground with palm leaves and waited outside.

Bored Sam stared at the ocean and waited for Claire to return, while James rested with closed eyes against a large piece of driftwood. A lot of time passed until he saw her coming out of the forest but it took him only one second to figure out what took her so long.

"Where did you get that from?!", surprised he jumped up and ran towards her and the little piglet she cradled in her arms.

"Oh this little guy…", she told him with a blissful smile. "I found him in the forest all by himself!"

The squeak it made woke James up who slowly arose and raised his arms screaming by the sight of it. "Oh my god you got a pig!"

Like a little child and with his mouth wide open he carefully put his giant hand on the back and brushed the bristly coat.

"Can you go ahead and prepare dinner? I have to go and get something. ", she explained and put it in his arms.

"Leave this to us!", promised Sam.

Like a trophy James held it up in the sunlight. "I still can´t believe we got a pig! This is gonna be amazing!"

"I´ll be back soon!", she said but they paid no longer attention to her, as they were too distracted by the small piglet, they now named Bacon. Relieved and knowing that he was in best care she left the beach and headed back to the forest. It still amazed her how full of life it was. No matter where she went there were always birds chirping or a small rodent hiding between the trees. While humming a little tune she walked around the trees and collected a few nuts she found on the ground. The thought of raising him as their own pet made her squeal with joy.

"I´m sure he´ll love it! I can´t wait to see his little face.", excited she hurried as fast as possible back to the cave. From afar she already saw the smoke and James and Sam crouching over the fire.

"Hey, where´s Bacon?"

Surprised the boys turned around and revealed a small body impaled on a stick and with a small apple in its mouth, slowly rotating over the fire.

Her bloodcurdling scream was so loud it could be heard miles away.

"YOU KILLED HIM! YOU JUST FUCKING KILLED HIM!"

"Grilled…", corrected James her. "We grilled him."

"WHERE'S THE DIFFERENCE?!"

"Isn´t it what we were supposed to do?", asked Sam confused.

Stunned she dropped to the ground and stared at the crackling fire. "I told you to take care of him…", she whispered. It was only then when the boys realized their mistake and exchanged an awkward look. It was one of the rare moments when they were able to communicate on a higher level.

"Do something…!", squeezed James internally at him.

Embarrassed Sam went over to her and put his hand on her back but she quickly smacked it away. "I´m not talking to murderers…"

Ashamed he lowered his head.

"Sorry for…killing you pet pig."

It sounded so ridiculous that he actually said it with a laugh. Immediately James covered his mouth but couldn´t control his snickering and quickly glanced at Claire.

"Ha…haha…ahahaha…You really did it. I still can´t believe you really did it! Oh my god…"

For a second the boys' didn´t know how to respond but then joined her in her awkward laughter. With a guilty feeling they stared into the fire. Even though they did feel sorry they had to admit that Bacon was delicious.

"I guess this is how we have to live from now on…", commented Claire after they've eaten up. "Sleeping on the ground…killing your pets. And there is nothing we can do about it…"

Bewildered Sam and James exchanged eye contact, shocked at her words that came from somebody who had just lost all innocence. For a while they sat silent, waiting for her to say something but even as the darkness creeped up on them she still remained quiet.

"Hey, do you maybe want to call it a day? You must be tired."

"No, I'm fine.", she muttered. "I'd like to stay a little longer. You can already go ahead without me."

Not knowing what to say or to do they headed back into the cave. The next morning they found her outside, still sitting around the campfire with eyes still as disillusioned as the night before.

"We have to do something.", declared Sam.

"I hate to agree with you, but I agree with you. You have a plan?"

He turned away from her. His eyes fell on the cave. "Actually I already have kind of an idea…"

"What are you whispering?"

Both of them flinched in surprise. "Nothing!"

"Oh…okay.", she replied slightly wary. "Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that I'll go search for food. I mean, somebody has to make sure we won't starve."

Despite cracking a little joke it seemed obvious to James that she was still a little upset and searched for an excuse to be alone for some time. And although none of them actually wanted her to leave they appreciated the opportunity it gave them. Once she left they picked up their tools and got to work.

"What happened with your hands?!", she asked shocked when she returned the late evening. "Did you punch each other again?!"

"He started it.", replied James quickly and pointed at Sam, who in return hit him with his elbow.

"Okay, okay, this isn't what actually happened. We thought that since you were so upset since we turned Bacon into Bacon that we could do something to make you feel better…"

"Don't tell me you tried to catch me a new pig?!"

"Actually we did something even better!", he assured her and smiled awkwardly at Sam. "Isn't that right?"

"Exactly. Totally.", he laughed nervously. "Definitely."

Suspicious she pushed them out of the way, ready to get disappointed but what she saw made her jaw drop.

Faint light coming from the holes in the ceiling that were now covered by huge leaves painted the entire cave in a calming green hue. Even the ground that has been covered with rocks, sand and leaves has been swept clean, revealing minerals glimmering like emeralds. Amazed she let her hands wander over the wooden shelf and the strings full of shimmering shells hanging from the ceiling.

But what took her the most was the giant bed with the driftwood frame standing to the left. Carefully she sat down on it, trying to absorb all these impressions.

"Do you like it?", asked Sam carefully.

"This is amazing!", she squealed and jumped into the air, throwing her arms around both of them. "Thank you so much."

"Does that mean you've forgiven us?", whispered James and fluttered his long eyelashes at her.

Lovingly she pulled both of them by their cheeks.

"Haha. No."


	10. Chapter 10

It has been two weeks since they have been stranded on this remote island. They already gave up looking for ships a while ago and instead went exploring, searching for food and stranded goods.

During one of their expeditions Sam and James went beyond the bamboo groove and discovered an overgrown cliff, a nesting place for seagulls. They have observed the birds for a while and chose to steal only the eggs which were laid recently.

The sun was rising in the east and the first rays of light broke through the forest. With thirst in his eyes Sam climbed down to reach the nests. Meanwhile James crouched over the edge and stared down on the beach that must have been at least seven meters below them. Climbing proved to be difficult as the strong wind constantly changed direction, yet Sam managed to reach a nest without any incident.

He put his backpack down and carefully put some of the spotted eggs inside. Worried he raised his head when he heard the faint screams from above. Some seagulls already returned and spotted the intruders.

"James, hurry, I think they´re coming back.", he yelled.

He received no answer. Thinking that he didn't hear him due to the wind whistling around them he climbed up, only to find James crouching over, his back turned to him.

"What are you doing?!", asked Sam angered.

"Picking up chicks!"

"WHAT?!"

James turned around to reveal a small bird with a greyish brown plumage and an look on its face that screamed of an unquenchable thirst for rage and destruction.

"Do you think what I think?!", he asked with a big smile.

"We´re going to grill it."

"What the…no! We should take Nugget with us!"

"Nugget?! Seriously?!"

"Please! Come on, dude!", he begged.

While they were arguing the seagulls approached them. When they realized it, it was already too late and Sam found himself under attack. Sharp beaks pecked his head and clothes.

"Help me, James!", he yelled desperately between the flapping wings that hit his face.

"I can´t, my hands are full of fluff!"

Sam managed to climb up and ran away, still being chased, while James stood helpless with Nugget in his hands. Noticing the chick in his hands a seagull made a long turn and descended towards him.

"Let it go!"

James stared down at Nugget, who flapped his tiny wings and tilted his head. A small crack spread over his heart.

"Forgive nugget, although fate does not allow us to stay together I am sure our paths will cross again. I may leave you but rest assured my love for you will always stay with you! Just like this bracelet."

He ripped one of his many colored bracelets off his wrists and tied it around his leg. With tears in his eyes he put Nugget down and let the hen flew take him under her wings. Heartbroken he turned away and climbed over the edge where he found Sam couching on the ground and covering his head from the attacking seagulls. Quickly James rushed to his aid and kicked a few of them away.

Unable to shake them off they fled screamingly into the bamboo groove and took shelter in the lush green. Terrified they lied on the ground and waited for the shadows roaming above them to pass by.

"Are they gone?", whispered James and peeked out of the bush they were hiding under after the screams were no longer audible.

"I think so."

Carefully they crawled out of their hiding place and opened the backpack. To their endless relief the eggs didn´t break. Tired from the encounter they made their way through the groove.

"Man, those birds were crazy! All you want is some nice _omlette au fromage_ , next thing you know you're in a cheap horror movie!"

"Never again!", agreed Sam as he pulled out a few feathers from his hair. "I don't care how good Claire's fried eggs might be, I have no intention of ever going back there ev…"

He would never get to finish his sentence. Like a wave the shock snatched the words away. Noticing the sudden silence this James spun around.

"What is it?"

Sam's gaze wandered down beneath his feet.

"I think I just…stepped on something?!"

He kneeled down and put his hand the ground. Even the usually green grass growing around them had an odd slightly yellow coloration. His curiosity being sparked James approached the scene and put his hands on his hips.

"Just hit it."

Gently Sam knocked on the surface and put his ear above the ground. "It sounds almost like…its hollow?"

Determined to find out what would be underneath they started violently ripping off the grass and earth. Their knuckles burned, roots dug painfully into their fingers and grass cut their skin but they paid no attention to it. Breathless they wiped off the last specks of dirt and looked in shock at what they found. Steel shined under the faint sunlight for the first time in what must have been months or years.

"A hatch?! What the hell is a hatch doing here?!", gasped James.

He looked in confusion at the teen with the blank expression. "Sam?"

"What?!", he flinched and raised is head.

"Do you know what that is?"

"I have no idea, sorry.", he mumbled.

James put his hands around the handle and tried opening it but to no avail, even his attempt of jumping on it proved to be futile. Annoyed he hit it with a stick.

"What should we do now?"

"Tell Claire.", he replied with a low voice. "We should go back to the cave and tell Claire."

He nodded and followed Sam who led the way home. The whole time they didn´t exchange a word, which James normally welcomed only this time wish that they would. His slight frustration at him only faded by the sight of Claire who already waited for them outside. Her face lightened up when she saw the boys returning but quickly faded when she saw Sam's serious expressions.

"What happened?", she asked worried. "Did you find any eggs?"

"Yes…but…we found also something else.", said James as he realized that Sam still wouldn´t answer. "There is a hatch right in the bamboo groove. We tried opening it but it didn´t work."

"A hatch?! Does that mean…"

"We´re probably not alone!", finished James.

"But isn´t that great?!", she asked excited. "That means we can get rescued! We can finally go home!"

"I don´t think so."

Both of them jerked their heads towards Sam who finally spoke up. "Who needs a secret hatch in the middle of an island?", he asked and nervously crossed his fingers. "Who knows who or what might be under it…I´ve got a bad feeling about this."

It´s not like James hadn´t been thinking about it but the possibility of finding other humans and getting off the island was too exciting.

"Maybe we will find a drug cartel, or a secret government facility or aliens, who knows!", he declared with clenched fists.

"Or we will just find normal people who can help us.", said Claire and smacked him on the head. "What do you think, Sam?"

They joined him around the fire and looked at him, worried and curious. He crossed his arms and leaned back, wagering all their options.

"I always wanted to explore the island a little more. We would be much saver here if we knew what is going on here. Maybe we even find a way to escape. I doubt the hatch will be the only thing we´ll find here..."

Both Claire and James jumped up and cheered in unison.

"When do we head out?"

"As fast as possible. But we need to be prepared. I guess in a few days...", Sam pondered.

James glanced at the cave, thinking of all the dangers they could encounter. "Guess it wouldn´t hurt to make a few more weapons. We´ll also need more food and water for surviving. Who knows how long we´ll be traveling…"

 _And what we´ll find…_

"Also, more importantly, where are we going?"

Sam picked up a twig and drew lines into the sand. "From what we explored I assume that the island must have a crescent shape. We came from one beach, through the jungle to where we are now. So there is only one way.", he raised his finger. "And that´s up."

Their eyes fell on the mountain in the distance. "Oh I know, I discovered a path in the jungle while I was searching for food.", remembered Claire.

"Why didn´t you say so earlier?!"

"Sheesh, I´m sorry, I forgot.", she mumbled and held up her arms in defense.

Sam held his head and sighed, wondering how his old self was able to stay together with her for so long. "Can you show us the way then?", he asked with a wry smile.

"Yes! Leave it to me!"

After assigning each one a task for each one for the next few days he packed out the eggs and grilled them on flat rock above the fire. The delicious smell made their mouth water and forget about the violent encounter with the seagulls.

After eating everything up the three went back inside and called it a day. It wasn't long after Sam heard James' loud snores and Claire's sighs of satisfaction she always made in her sleep. Restless he turned back and forth as much as he could since he was literally trapped between them.

He pushed himself up and sighed. In hopes of finding peace for his troubled mind he stood up and headed outside. Lost in his thought he walked around, nothing but trees surrounded him. Immediately he felt himself being comforted by the gentle orchestra of the night. He closed his eyes, letting the songs soothe him when out of nowhere a loud cawing sounded above his head. Surprised he turned his head and found himself face to face to a little brown haired boy, standing atop a tree.

 _Wait, who are you?! What are you doing here?!_

Without a warning the child jumped down in front of him. Stunned by his sudden appearance he almost oversaw his sign to follow him.

 _Hey! Wait!_

He ran as fast as possible after the laughing boy but he was no match for his flying speed. Already thinking he had lost him he slowed down but the familiar cawing returned. He spun around to the boy standing behind him, his finger pointing at the hatch.

 _What do you want to tell me? What are trying to show me?_

The boy remained silent.

Suspicious but still curious he approached him and peeked into the dark hole. As he gaped into the abyss he felt a strange pull.Panicked he stretched his arm to prevent his fall out but it was too late. Darkness swallowed him.

He didn't know for how long he lied on the ground, becoming smaller and smaller until his shirt became so long it reached his knees. It could have been forever if it weren't for the echo of footsteps reaching his ears. His eyes widened with surprise. He raised his head. Every single hair on his neck stood up.

He wasn't alone.

Frozen with fear he stared down the hallway from where the sound came from. The feeling of dread almost overwhelmed him by the sight of the pair of elegant leather shoes followed by a black suit emerging from the darkness. Out of the sudden he felt very small and very vulnerable.

The man's lips curled up into a smile. Before his words could reach him he turned away and covered his ears.

 _Shut up! Shut up, shut up, shut up!_

Terrified he slapped his hand away and pushed himself up.

He had to run somewhere, nowhere, anywhere, away from _him_.

Panicked he fled from the shadow, leaving his clothes behind and revealing a white shirt, blue vest and short trousers underneath. Aimlessly he stumbled through the nothingness when he caught a glimpse of light, a white speck in the endless darkness. Hope swelled up in him.

Gathering all his strength he sprinted towards it, making countless of steps but it took _him_ only two to reach him. His hand wrapped around his arm and yanked him back. Ignoring his struggle against he picked him up as if he weighted nothing. Desperate he looked over his shoulder one last time as he was carried away from the light.

 _No…don't….let go…LET ME GO!_

He woke up screaming. Disturbed he looked around but only found himself back in the cave right next to Claire. He had never left.

"What the hell?! A dream…?", he panted.

Slowly he leaned back and stared at the ceiling. He heard Claire mumbling in her sleep and let her snuggle into his arms. Feeling her warmth against his chest somehow calmed him down but falling completely back asleep was simply impossible.

Before the first rays of sunshine entered the cave he headed out. Gentle waves splashes against the rock he sat on.

"Sam?"

He turned around and saw Claire staying at the edge of the water. "Oh, it´s just you…"

"Are you alright? You look kinda tired…"

"Just a stupid nightmare…nothing to worry about.", he mumbled.

Carefully she waded through the water and joined him at the rock. He stretched his arm out and pulled her up, afraid that she would fall. For a while they sat there in comfortable silence. Worried he took off his shirt and put it around her shoulders, protecting her pale skin from the burning sun.

"Oh Sam, you don´t always have to be so worried about me!", she giggled.

"Just watch out that you don't get sunburnt…"

She pulled it closer around her and put her nose on the fabric. Since they came here his usual scent of amber and smoke was completely gone and instead replaced by that of the sea.

"Say…what is it you dreamt about?", she asked wondering.

"Sorry, I forgot.", he lied. "Anyway…how are the preparations going?"

"Pretty good. We found a few glass bottles! Oh, and James is drying meat so that we can eat even when we´re traveling. If everything is going smoothly we´ll be able to leave tomorrow!"

"Sounds great…", he replied apathetic.

"Hey!", she waved his hand before his face. "What are you so gloomy about, aren´t you happy?!"

Nervous he moved around. This nightmare he had just added fuel to his worries. "I can´t really explain it…I just…have a weird feeling about this…"

Claire snickered. "Are you scared?"

"I´m not!", he protested and turned away.

"Awww!"

Continuously she poked him in his side to the point that he finally had enough.

Without warning he pushed her into the water and watched her screaming and splashing with great satisfaction.

"Sam…you asshole!", she gasped.

"Well, that´s not a nice way to talk to your boyfriend.", he scolded her with a smug smile. Whistling he leaned on the rock and let the sun warming his chest blissfully ignoring her loud swears.

Although she was upset for a while at him her excitement of leaving this place soon lifted her mood into the sky. This evening she stayed awake the longest, her dream of getting home did not let her sleep so easily.

"Maman, Papa…", she whispered.

James heard her talking and realized how much he missed his mother and sisters too. But the possibility of unearthing a secret government facility and becoming famous was stronger than his homesickness. Right next to him laid Sam who kept thinking about the hatch, unable to share their joy, torn between his wish to finally get everything back and his fear of disappointment. What if his memories would turn out not to be what he hoped for?

This night none of them could sleep well.

The next morning they woke up early. Equipped with spears and provisions the three stood silent in front of their cave. They´ve been living there for a while now and they didn´t know when they would return, if, they would return at all but there was no turning back. Everything was prepared for this very moment.

Sam pulled the strap of his backpack and took Claire´s hand.

"Let's go…"

Without looking back the three headed towards the jungle.

Into the unknown.


	11. Chapter 11

It was a sunny day, the blue sky showed no single cloud and a soft breeze stroke their heads.

After filling Sam's backpack with food and water they headed out in the morning to avoid most of the tropical heat and burning sun. Noticing how much she suffered Sam handed a giant leaf to Claire so that she could shield her sensitive skin.

"Claire, why are you so white?", asked James jokingly.

"Oh god, James, you can´t just ask people why they´re white.", groaned Sam.

Ignoring their frantic laughter Claire led the way towards the hill. Armed with a stick she marched forward and cleared the path in front of them. With every step it became more difficult to walk until they had to hold on tree vines while marching up. By the time they reached the top, sweat was running down their faces.

As the jungle became more dense their feet sunk deeper in the morass, cold mud oozed into their shoes.

"Claire, where the hell are we going?", yelled James in frustration.

"Up, just as you wanted!"

Both boys groaned and Claire had to agree that this was an awful place with its trees, crested by long twisted branches resembling arms stretching out after them. The smell of rich earth lingered in the air along with a fine veil of mist, hiding countless of creatures observing them out of yellow eyes. Forced to leap from place to place in order not to fall into the surrounding waters they clung onto large roots and vines. Just as James was about to step on a rock a hand suddenly pulled him by the shirt.

"WATCH OUT!"

Dumbfounded he found himself sitting on the ground and blinked at the person who pushed him. "Dude, what was that for?!"

Silent Sam stood with his arms slightly raised, his wide open eyes flickering like silver as he stared at the black surface.

"There is something in the water…", he whispered.

He pointed to the large body with its dark scaly back and golden eyes that slowly rose out of the water along with its long snout . A faint hissing sound emerged from its jaws which made the surface vibrate. Intrigued they came closer and stared at the giant creature. None of them have ever seen one this close.

"An alligator! I thought they only lived in the sewers?!"

"What the hell, James?!"

Claire backed away, scared that the creature would lunge at them. "Oh god! What should we do now?!"

Sam stepped away from the animal and rubbed his chin in deep thought. They already traveled far, almost too far, as it could take them hours to find their way back through the new terrain and the sun already cast longer shadows than before. But since they had no idea what lied ahead they couldn't just keep going without possibly getting caught up by the nightfall. A chill ran across his spine by the thought of being stuck here in the dark.

He raised his head and observed the terrain. Not far away from them a small hill surrounded by water emerged from the fog.

"If we climb up there, maybe we´ll find a way out here. And we´ll be probably safe from that thing too.", he said while pointing on it. "Anyone has a better idea?"

Silent Claire stared at the ground while James whistled innocently.

"Okay, I take that as a yes.", declared Sam.

Nervous they made a great turn around the reptile and marched as fast as they could towards the hill. With a raised eyebrow James observed the alligator slowly following the group.

"Dudes, that thing is tailing us.", he mentioned casually and noted several more shadows emerging out of the water. "Oh, yeah and it's not alone."

To both their horror they saw group of five alligators coming from each direction. Their massive jaws held teeth that were almost as long as a human finger. Sam felt his blood running cold. He grabbed Claire by the hand.

"Run!"

Hand in hand they ran up the small hill unlike James. Still undaunted he stood by the bottom of the hill and raised his spear. He has waited for such a moment.

"What are you doing?! That´s dangerous!", screamed Claire.

"You can´t be in danger, if you are the danger.", he replied and tipped his forehead, smirking.

"JAMES!"

"Okay…sheesh."

He joined them at the top of the hill where he wondered why Sam´s face turned so pale but when he reached them found out why.

They were surrounded.

Several alligator of various sizes dug their long claws into the soil and pulled themselves up. An especially large specimen suddenly launched out of the water and although they were high enough the drops already reached their legs. With a loud splash it fell back, followed by a faint whimper.

Sam turned around, right by his side Claire collapsed on the ground and held her hands over her head. They were shaking. Tears emerged from her wide open eyes.

"This is it…", she whispered. "We´re all gonna die here…!"

Like in trance he observed how James tried to calm her down while the reptiles approached them. He raised his head. His large brown eyes met his, like a stab through the chest.

 _This is all my fault…if I don´t do something we´ll get killed…!_

He clenched his fists. He couldn't let that it happen.

Determined he walked to the edge of the small hill. In a span of a few seconds he asserted the entire terrain. Not far away from them he spotted dry land emerging from the fog. He had a plan.

"James! You two go ahead.", he declared. "I´ll stay behind and buy us some time."

"Are you sure about this?!"

"Do we have a choice?", he replied with a crooked smile.

James jerked his head at the alligators that came closer with each passing second. He let out a snarl and pulled Claire up, dragging her towards the edge which she heavily protested against by screaming and kicking.

"I can´t!", she cried. "I´m too scared!"

Fearing that she would succumb to her fear Sam grabbed her by the shoulders and stared into her eyes. "Claire, remember the time when we jumped over that edge. You were so brave back then. You can do it again! James will hold you!"

"What about you?!", she asked panicked, suddenly realizing what this meant.

"Don´t worry about me! I´ll be right behind you, I promise!"

He was glad how reassured his voice sounded, knowing that he might break it. Seemingly convinced Claire wiped the tears off her face and took a deep breath, letting James lead her to the edge. As they passed him by he put his hand on Sam's shoulder.

"Hey, don´t die.", he said with a low voice.

The words made his stomach drop. "I´ll try…"

Still slightly stunned he stared at the ground, it was only when James and Claire landed with a loud splash in the murky water that Sam awoke from his frozen state. His eyes darted to the approaching alligators. He tightened the grip around his spear. With the sharp end of his weapon he lunged forward, driving them slightly back.

"Faster! Don't look back!", he shouted and glanced over his shoulder. What he saw made his blood froze.

One single alligator has abandoned the group, having discovered an easier prey. Horrified he watched how it sank into the water and swam away. Right after Claire and James.

His cry came from deep within the chest. "NO!"

A wave of adrenaline rushed through his body. His eyes set on the alligator he raced towards the edge.

And leaped off.

In a flash his spear rammed right through the reptiles head. Under his weight its scaly back broke with a loud crack followed by the sound of blood splattering on his face. The massive reptile twitched violently, apparently still alive, but suddenly stopped moving as he pulled the spear out. Stunned he slipped into the shallow water.

"Is…is it dead?!", he asked fearfully.

"SAM!"

His eyes darted away from the animal to where the scream came from. Not far away from him Claire and James jumped erratically, waving and pointing behind him. Without him noticing the pack had come dangerously closer.

Fear set it. Under their screams he raced towards the shore. Too terrified to see how close they were he fought his way forward as rocks flew above his head, occasionally hitting one of the reptiles. And although Claire almost never missed her targets he felt them coming closer with each stroke he made.

As scream escaped him as he felt teeth grazing his leg, making him stumble through the shallow water towards James.

"MOVE YOUR ASS!", he shouted and pulled him out of the way. Violently he kicked the alligator's snout several times while Claire dragged Sam to the dry land.

"RUN, RUN, RUN!"

Quickly James grabbed him by the arm and pushed both of them until their feet found firm ground. Screaming they escaped this horrible place, darting blindly into the depths of the jungle. And although there was no way for the reptiles to chase them any further they didn´t stop until they collapsed from exhaustion.

Sam staggered towards a tree and held, fearing that he would lose consciousness any moment. He closed his eyes, breathing in and out, trying to suppress the images that now resurfaced. His body trembled open remembering the sensation of piercing flesh and the cold blood splattering on his face. He couldn't hold it down it any further.

James flinched in surprise upon hearing the sound of puking coming from behind a nearby tree.

"Yo, are you okay?"

This earned him a glare out of feverish eyes. Loose strands of brown hair hung over his pale face.

"Please, go.", he whispered. "I'm fine."

"Dude, you're fucking wasted."

Ignoring his protest he grabbed Sam who was too weak to resist and carried him by the shoulder towards Claire. Face down she lied sobbing on the ground, no longer caring about the dirt that stained her clothes and face.

"Stand up."

"I can´t do this anymore.", she cried. "Just let me die here."

"Nope, I won't. I need your help to set up a place for the night, because this guy here…", he gently shook Sam. "…just passed out."

"Oh god, Sam!" Instantly she arose and rushed towards them. Her hands trembled when she put them on his face and even more when she realized how hot he was.

"That fight must have been a little too much for him."

Together they carried Sam to a small clearing by a river and carefully lied him on one of the many moss beds. Soon the crackling of the fire Claire created filled the air, casting shadows on his face. She ripped off a piece of cloth off her once white shirt, wiping the sweat and blood away with the water of a nearby river.

"He's still unconscious?"

Claire spun around, finding James next to her with his arms full of wood. Slightly surprised she watched him putting some twigs into the fire and sitting down on the opposite side. For a second she could have sworn to see a trace of disappointment behind his brown eyes.

"This dude is crazy, he basically doesn´t know us and yet he stood behind and fought those alligators."

James is right, she thought to herself. With him losing all his memories things weren't like before between them but still he put his life on the line for her. A stranger. Guilt throbbed in her chest.

"This is all my fault...if it weren't for me, he wouldn't have stayed behind and put himself in danger…"

"Hey, come on, don't beat yourself up about it. It was his decision to stay behind. You didn't force him to do anything. You gotta believe when I tell you that: he wanted this."

"But he's in so much pain now. How can I make up it up to him?", she asked desperate.

"I think you being alive is enough for him."

"You think so?"

"Yeah.", he replied without hesitation.

Hearing his words made her heart flutter. Tenderly she stroke his messy brown hair. He looked more peaceful and younger when he was asleep, she noticed. It must have been his eyes.

"Sleeping beauty.", commented James and leaned over him. "You should give him a kiss."

"Jay-Jay!", embarrassed she hit him with her elbow.

"Then I´m gonna try it. No homo, though."

"Noooooo."

Before his lips could find its target she pulled him away from the innocently sleeping Sam. After a long debate whenever a kiss could kill him or wake him up they decided splitting up their sleep time so that one of them could keep guard, starting with her.

"If anything happens, wake me up.", he told her while putting a giant leaf on the ground. "Man, I hope I can sleep at all…", he mumbled. However, there was no reason for him to be afraid seeing how after a few minutes he already laid with his arms and legs stretched out, sleeping tightly as if the events of today never occurred.

Now she sat all by herself along with the creatures of the night. She moved closer to the fire, seeking protection in the warm light from the countless pairs of glowing eyes hovering around her.

Afraid that something might attack them she stayed on high alert. They had no idea what was hiding in that jungle or whose territory they invaded. Everything depended on her reacting and warning everybody on time.

"Mum…no….not the..."

She almost let a faint scream escape her mouth.

"Sam?", she whispered. "Are you sleep-talking?!"

His chest went up and down, sweat was running down his forehead. He whimpered faintly, calling for the mother who he almost never talked about and hasn't seen in years. It broke her heart.

"It´s alright, Sam. Shhh, it´s alright."

"No…don't go…", he cried.

"I won't. I´m here. I will never leave you. I promise."

She pulled him into her arms and to her relief the moment she held him in her embrace a wave of peace swept over his face. The entire night she stayed by his side, humming his favorite song and stroking his hair. Only when James awoke for his turn to keep watch did she take a rest and finally fell asleep.

Hours have passed when the sun broke through the dense canopy and touched Sam's face. He raised his hand, covering his eyes from the dancing light. Under its warmth he felt the morning dew on his clothes, the soft moss on his back and the weight on his chest. He raised his head, long blonde waves cascaded over his shoulder, framing the face of the person who was lying atop of him.

Claire.

"Morning, sleeping beauty."

He almost didn't recognize the large figure with the dark circles under his eyes, sitting right on the opposite side of the remnants of the fire. He raised his hand and smiled wry before he flopped to the ground, snoring instantly.

 _What the hell happened here? Oh yeah…I fought some alligators and puked behind a tree…great._

Wondering he blinked at the light above him but the dense leave canopy didn´t allow him to figure out the position of the sun.

 _How long was I out? Hours? A day?_

He put his hand on Claire's cheek, brushing the hair out of her face as gently as he could, revealing the dark circles under her eyes. Even her usually rosy cheeks have lost their color. Neither her nor James got enough sleep as he could tell from their appearances. They must have been terrified by the jungle at night, he realized.

"I'm sorry…", he mumbled, despite knowing that they couldn't hear him.

Despite the pain in his back he decided to resign to his fate as a body pillow and let her sleep a little more in his arms.

He closed his eyes and listened to the water streaming from a nearby river, the gentle rustling of the leaves and Claire´s calm breaths. Apart from that the jungle was calm, no monkey screamed, no bird sung. An eerie silence hung over them, so silent he could hear a raindrop falling.

Sam jerked his eyes wide open upon the sudden realization.

They weren´t alone.


	12. Chapter 12

For the first time Sam dreaded the calm.

The animals on this island haven't met them with any unease, they never learned to fear humans for the predator they really are. Thus the rainforest never became quiet around them, except for this very moment, which meant only one thing: another hunter was hiding amongst the trees. And it was dangerous enough that it silenced the entire jungle.

Ice spread through his veins upon hearing the deep sound coming from the thicket, like thunder rolling from the distance. His worst fear became reality. They were truly not alone.

He tightened his grip around Claire. They had to get away from here.

"Hey, wake up!"

Nervously he pinched her cheek until she finally awakened. Slightly disoriented she turned her head until her eyes found his.

"Sam?", she mumbled. "What´s going on?"

He took a deep breath. "Claire, I need you to stay calm. There is a wild animal here and I have no idea what it is. We have to leave!"

"Eh?!"

As if the creature wanted to erase her doubts it let out another deep growl. Claire gasped in shock upon the sound but before the scream could escape her lips Sam held her down, afraid that she would provoke the animal.

"Stay quiet!", he hissed. "Do you want to kill us?!"

She shook her head as much as she could under his tight grip. Slowly let go of her mouth and pulled her up. On high alert he scanned the surrounding thicket while she flitted towards James and shook him by the shoulder.

"What?", he croaked after waking up to the frantic look on her face.

"There is a dangerous animal. We have to leave!"

"Not this again…", he groaned. "What is this, Monday?"

After extinguishing the last remains of the fire they left the small clearing and headed towards the nearby stream. Fearing an encounter with whatever hid between the leaves and getting lost they decided to continue their journey through the shallow water.

"Great…who knows what swims around here… ", complained Claire; the thought of leeches and other parasites latching onto her made her shiver with disgust.

"Come on, how bad can it be?", asked Sam with an eye roll.

Like the hero he wanted himself to be James marched forward, pushing the logs that floated down the river out of their way. From afar he saw an especially large one heading towards them. He was already surprised by its strange shape and size but even more by its sudden movement when it came into contact with his spear.

When he realized what he truly hit it was almost too late.

"Snake!", he screamed. "SNAKE!"

Without thinking he threw his spear at it but missed. Horrified Sam watched the now agitated snake lunging after James who turn threw a large log at it, causing a massive splash.

"Stay back, Claire!", he yelled and pushed her away before running towards James, who still kept on blindly bashing around. The panic made him completely forget about his surroundings, causing him to slip and fall head bent over into the river.

When he arose from the water James stood frozen with the spear back in his hand, ready to strike again.

"Where is it?!", he gasped.

"I have no idea but I have it with this motherfucking snake on this motherfucking island!"

An deceptive calm fell upon them, marked by their short breaths and the rippling of the water. They almost considered the fight to be over when a loud flash made them scream in surprise. Sam stumbled back as the snake shot towards him. Deep golden eyes locked into his. He raised his hands before his face, gaping into its massive jaw.

The world around Claire came to a halt. Nothing could reach her anymore. All she saw was the giant reptile and the one it was about to attack; beneath her feet a big rock in the water.

She ran.

The next second she held it in her hands; ignoring the fear, the pain in her arms and the cold of the water. All her actions were incited by one single thought, one picture inside her head, giving her strength she never felt before her entire life.

"Don´t move!"

With all her might Claire raised the rock over her head before smashing it down. Water splattered on fell on her face, blinding her.

"Claire! Sam!"

James voice pierced her ears. Slowly she opened her eyes, and found him sitting right in front of her with a big rock between his legs and the dead reptile under it. Fear clutched around her heart.

"A…are you alright?!", she asked him with a trembling voice.

His knees were still shaking when he got back up with her help. Expecting the worst she held her tears back as he let his hands wandered over his body.

"I…I think I´m…fine?", he replied in slight disbelief.

Upon hearing those words she threw her arms around him and pressed her face against his chest. His heart beat louder than the crashing waves. He was alive.

Tears fell on his shirt as Claire silently clutched onto him. Sam gasped in surprise, feeling every muscle turning stiff.

"Come on, you don't need to cry.", he laughed nervous and stroke her head. "There, there."

Awkwardly he turned his head away from her when he noticed James staring at them with mouth wide open. He raised his hand above his head, barely able to fathom what just had happened.

"That. Was. Overkill!"

Taken aback Claire let go of Sam and tilted her head. "Eh?"

Both their eyes followed James who set his foot triumphantly over the rock, wiggling the dead snake's tail. "You just destroyed a motherfucking python, Claire!", he announced with a bright smile. "Or an anaconda, who knows…"

Shocked she took a closer look. "Did I just carry that?"

"You totally slayed!"

Sam watched her closely as her lips slowly turned into a weak smile. "Are you alright? Can you walk?", he asked concerned, fearing that she would collapse any moment.

"No, no, I'm fine.", she reassured him. "Let's…just keep going."

A strange calm spread through her chest, like the sun breaking through stormy skies. The threads that kept her on the ground snapped, leaving her mind to fly to faraway places. With her head high in the clouds she walked behind James who carried on leading the trail through the waters, only this time more cautiously and thus they arrived without further incident at a white stream cascading over black rocks. A confident grin crossed his face.

"Looks like we hit a dead end.", he concluded. "Guess we hafta climb but don't worry, I'll…"

"Wait."

Suppressing a snarl he jerked his head towards Sam. Suspicious he watched as he strolled past them and walked behind the waterfall. After taking a peek he waved his hand, giving them a sign to follow him.

James felt his jaw dropping upon the sight of the entrance hidden by the wall of water.

"Wait, how did you…?! What?!"

"Wow, Sam!", beamed Claire. "You're so smart!"

Dismayed that he was defeated by Sam and yet somewhat relieved that they found a shortcut he begrudgingly tagged along as they went inside the cave.

The scent of moss and rainwater hung in the cold damp air. Countless crystals captured the faint daylight, drawing stars of all colors on the walls. While Claire and James stared at them in awe Sam approached a small spring. He kneeled down, replenishing their water supply when he noticed another reflection on the water's surface. A chill ran down his spine, although this time it wasn't the cold.

"Hey, you two…", he whispered and grabbed their attention. "Look!"

Above them a huge mass of small in fur covered bodies moved their leathery wings, tiny black eyes and sharp little teeth shined in the dark. James was the first one to find his voice again.

"Fuck this shit, I'm out."

As quietly as possible they made their ways towards the cave exit when a distant growl interrupted them. James could see the daggers shooting out of Sam's silver eyes.

"I know what you're thinking and no, it wasn't me."

"Who else could it be?", he asked annoyed, knowing very well James' seemingly voracious appetite.

"I didn't do it! I swear I…"

He couldn't get to finish his sentence as out of the sudden the air was filled with hundreds of bats. Their high screeches mixed with the screams of the teenagers who crouched over, their hands covering their heads. For a few seconds complete darkness wrapped around them before the bats escaped outside and disappeared into the light.

Breathless the three stared at the other. None of them dared to raise their voice, let alone move. Everything stood still.

It didn't last long.

A roar from deep within the earth tore apart the silence. Under their feet the ground shook violently, making them fall over screaming. Chunks of rocks fell from the cracking walls, covering them in bruises. Aimlessly Claire turned her head in the dark and caught a glimpse of Sam on his knees, frozen. She stood up, trying to reach him but her attempts were in vain. Sharp pain pierced her knees as she hit the ground.

"Sam!", she screamed out but her voice got buried under the roaring sound of the earthquake.

James gritted his teeth. Ignoring the falling rocks that grazed him he grabbed Sam by the collar and put his arm around Claire before rushing towards the exit. Blinded by the light they all stumbled to the ground, lying on the soft grass until the trembling passed.

Exhausted Claire lied on her back, glancing at James who lied face over by her side. "You saved us. Thank you Jay-Jay!"

"I´m traumatized for life.", he wheezed.

She was about to let out a sigh of relief when a faint groan made her heart skip. "Sam?"

Her voice couldn't reach him. He was swept away, tossed around by the waves of fear that drowned him. Dark waters engulfed him, making him choke for air. This was it. It was over. He was out on the ocean, alone, where nobody could find him ever again.

He felt a touch on his shoulder and gasped in shock. He blinked in confusion, there was no dark ocean and no waves, only soft grass beneath him and Claire by his side.

"Are you alright?", she asked and her voice was full of worry.

It took him a few seconds to resurface.

"It´s nothing.", he muttered and brushed the hair out of his face, embarrassed that she saw this side of him. "I'm fine."

James turned away, leaving the two have their moment when his gaze fell upon the scenery. Struck with awe the words that left his mouth were barely a whisper.

"Oh, man, look at that…"

The warm wind softly blew the clouds away, leaving the rays of light dance across the shimmering blue that spread before them. Almost reverentially they approached the crystal clear lake embedded in the hills at the foot of the mountain. Small fish and ducks swam amongst the bright green lily pads that were sprinkled across the shore along with the rose water lilies. Everywhere they looked the air was filled with warmth and life.

Serenity surrounded Sam. He wouldn't have been surprised if he would have awoken any moment.

But this was no dream as he soon discovered when James pushed him into the cold water. Meanwhile Claire took shelter under a nearby tree, declining James' calls to join them. The thought of entering deep waters still made her shiver.

She closed her eyes, leaning tired against the tree. Only now did she feel the fights and sleepless nights taking its toll on her. Throughout the entire journey they've barely got enough rest, let alone eaten. Remembering that they still had proviant she reached for Sam's backpack when she stumbled upon his notebook.

Countless of pages filled with detailed sketches and fine writing revealed themselves in front of her. They were beautiful, stunning even but they were not Sam's. Not the one she knew of. For a long time she stared at the drawings, not knowing whenever she should be amazed or worried by them.

"Heeeey!"

Claire could feel the heat rushing in her cheeks by the sight of the boys walking barefooted through the soft grass, wearing nothing but their shorts. In the few weeks they spend here Sam has changed, his chest has become more toned and the sun gave his usually pale skin a gentle touch, bringing out the stormy sea in his eyes.

"Maybe I could get used to this...", she pondered.

"What did you say?"

"Nothing!"

His eyes fell on her hands and the book she was holding. Every muscle in his body turned stiff. "What are you doing?", he asked disturbed.

"Oh nothing, just looking at those pretty drawings. I never knew you were so good at it!"

"Can I have it back?", he stretched his hand out, giving her a crooked smile. "It is more like a diary for me, you know."

"Ah, okay. Sorry."

Somewhat disappointed she handed it back and watched it disappearing into his backpack. She sensed the restlessness in him, how hastily he put on back his clothes and stared into the distance.

"What are you looking at?"

"I don't know…but I´d really like to check on something..."

"Okay, where?"

"Right by the mountain. I´ve got a feeling we could find something there…", he murmured and pulled his collar.

James eye's turned into small slits. "What makes you think so?"

"I can´t really explain it but there is something about this place…I´d like to go there."

Both he and Claire raised their eyebrows at each other. Without waiting for them Sam went ahead, leaving them to pick up his backpack and carry it.

"I tell ya, he was abducted by aliens and replaced!", whispered James but she just smiled and rolled her eyes in response. "Fine, okay, maybe he´s just a shapeshifter!"

Ignoring their chattering he sped up, something was guiding him to a small groove by the foot of the mountain, like waves pushing him towards the shore. He stretched his hands out, pushing away the branches of the thickets.

What he saw made him freeze.

He stepped back and rubbed his brow. Flashes of icy pain ran across his head.

"What the fuck is that?! Is this an entrance?!"

James voice echoed in his ears. Claire brushed past him and let her fingers run across the cold rusty metal. She turned her head towards him. Confusion spread across her face.

"How did you find this? How did you know where to search for…?"

"I, I can´t really explain but….", he stuttered.

And then it all came back to her; the fire he sparked, the weapons he created, the prey he caught almost effortlessly and how he somehow always found his way, all of it creating more questions than answers in her head.

She felt two large hands picking her up and putting her aside. With the hint of a grin on his face James placed his hand on the door wheel. His strong arm muscles turned tense. Under loud screeching he managed to push it open.

Light fell on the hallway.

Sam stepped inside, leaving footprint on the in dust covered floor. Claire followed after, gazing at the cracks that ran across the concrete walls. Carefully she set her feet on the ground, avoiding the shards of glass that lied in her way.

"What is this place?", he heard her gasping.

Waves of shivers swept over Sam. His heart raced. He knew the answer. "This…is a facility…funded by a drug company.", he answered.

"How do you know that?!", asked James bewildered.

"Because I´ve been here before…", he whispered and came to a halt, staring deeper into the darkness.

"…over ten years ago."


End file.
